Marine to Receive Navy Cross

[SlightlyCatholic]

Marine to receive Navy Cross posthumously
9/19/2008 By Lance Cpl. Bryan G. Carfrey, Headquarters Marine Corps

WASHINGTON — The Navy Cross will be awarded to Sgt. Rafael Peralta posthumously for valor during combat operations conducted November 2004 in Fallujah, Iraq, the Secretary of the Navy announced Sept. 17.
Peralta, 25, based out of Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, with Company A, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, assigned to 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, was shot while clearing his seventh house on the morning of Nov. 15, 2004, during Operation Al Fajr, an assault to eliminate an insurgent stronghold within the city.


According to a I MEF press release, during search and attack operations Nov. 15, 2004, while clearing houses, Peralta was caught in a crossfire between Marines and insurgents, leaving him mortally wounded.

“After the initial exchange of gunfire, the insurgents broke contact, throwing a fragmentation grenade as they fled the building,” the press release said. "Without hesitation and with complete disregard for his own safety, Peralta reached out and pulled the grenade to his body, absorbing the brunt of the blast and shielding fellow Marines only feet away."


The medal will be presented to the Peralta family at a later date. Only 23 Marines and sailors have been awarded the Navy Cross since Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom began.

Born April 7, 1979, in Mexico City, Peralta was the oldest of four siblings. The son of Rafael and Rosa Peralta, he immigrated to the United States and joined the Marine Corps in April 2000 after receiving his green card and later became an American citizen.


Peralta is buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego. A funeral was held for him Nov. 23, 2004, at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.

Cpl. T. J. Kaemmerer, a combat correspondent who fought alongside Peralta, wrote about the day Peralta died:


“Mortally wounded, he jumped into the already cleared, adjoining room, giving the rest of us a clear line of fire through the doorway to the rear of the house. I saw four Marines firing from the adjoining room when a yellow, foreign-made, oval-shaped grenade bounced into the room, rolling to a stop close to Peralta’s nearly lifeless body ... in his last fleeting moments of consciousness (he) reached out and pulled the grenade into his body.”

Kaemmerer also retold the advice Cpl. Richard A. Mason, an infantryman with Headquarters Platoon, told him shortly after Peralta's death: "You’re still here; don’t forget that. Tell your kids, your grandkids, what Sgt. Peralta did for you and the other Marines today."

Link at: http://www.marines.mil/units/hqmc/Pages/peralta.aspx

[PaulR]

This is great stuff to see... thank you for posting it. Thanks to the media the way it is today, we will never see things like this on our news programs. Everyone needs to know the stories of these Heroes.

[SlightlyCatholic]

You're very welcome, Paul. Glad to put it up.

This is what struck me most of all:

“Mortally wounded, he jumped into the already cleared, adjoining room, giving the rest of us a clear line of fire through the doorway to the rear of the house. I saw four Marines firing from the adjoining room when a yellow, foreign-made, oval-shaped grenade bounced into the room, rolling to a stop close to Peralta’s nearly lifeless body ... in his last fleeting moments of consciousness (he) reached out and pulled the grenade into his body.”

In his last moments he could've easily just layed there, but he used every ounce of life left in his to save his fellow Marines. Insane but truly heroic.

[armysc_25b]

Unfortunately what isn't seen here is the fight that's going between his family and DoD about this. The award was originally recommended as a Medal of Honor, however got downgraded after the OK by the Dept. of the Navy for reasons I don't necessarily want to understand or agree with.

Nonetheless, his actions are something to be commended, and sadly the media won't recognize this as they should. Sgt, thank you for your heroic actions.

[SlightlyCatholic]

Originally Posted by armysc_25b

Unfortunately what isn't seen here is the fight that's going between his family and DoD about this. The award was originally recommended as a Medal of Honor, however got downgraded after the OK by the Dept. of the Navy for reasons I don't necessarily want to understand or agree with.

Nonetheless, his actions are something to be commended, and sadly the media won't recognize this as they should. Sgt, thank you for your heroic actions.

Yeah I don't understand that. There was a SEAL LT who did the same thing (covered a grenade with his body) not too long ago and got the Medal of Honor. If I remember correctly, there was also an Army PFC who was also awarded the MOH for something similar. Why the bias?

[JmpMarine]

And Marine Cpl Dunham also for a similar action.

[txb&b]

Originally Posted by Seminarian_Tim

There was a SEAL LT who did the same thing (covered a grenade with his body) not too long ago and got the Medal of Honor.

Incorrect. The MOH recipient who was a SEAL LT was Michael Murphy who was mortally wounded when he deliberately exposed himself to enemy fire in order to call for help to save his teammates. Michael Monsoor, the SEAL who was awarded the MOH for throwing himself on a grenade to save his teammates, was the same rank as FeelinFroggy.

[SlightlyCatholic]

Not sure how I missed that...thanks for the correction. I must've mixed up the two SEALs stories.