Army Warrior Soldier of the Week – SSG Greg Ruske
November 19th, 2008 by Admin
On Oct. 23, 2008, the Chief of the Army Reserve presented Staff Sgt. Gregory S. Ruske with the Silver Star, for actions on April 21, 2008 in Kapisa Province, Afghanistan.
Staff Sgt. Ruske, 3rd Platoon, A Co., Task Force Gladiator, was part of a dismounted patrol through an area inaccessible by vehicle when a large Taliban force ambushed them with grenade, machine gun and small‐arms fire. Trapped in the open, Staff Sgt. Ruske returned fire while the bulk of the patrol moved to cover. He then scaled the roof of a nearby building and continued firing despite sustaining a gunshot wound in the hip. From the roof, he saw two Afghan National policemen, still pinned down in the open. One ran for cover, but the second fell to enemy fire and could only crawl.
Staff Sgt. Ruske directed his Squad Automatic Weapon gunner to lay suppressive fire while he and another Soldier dodged enemy bullets to retrieve the wounded officer. Only after moving the man to safety did the pair realize that Staff Sgt. Ruske’s leg had been shattered by enemy fire.
For his gallantry in action, Staff Sgt. Gregory Ruske is this week’s Warrior‐Soldier.
SSG Gregory Ruske aids and Afghan civilian
These stories need to be FRONT and CENTER in the news every night. I'm glad you tell us about what our soldiers are doing to make a positive difference in the world.
Sorry Dan, but you and I both know stories like this won't see the light of day save for blogs like Soldier's. The media doesn't want to tell stories about heroes, they like controversy and death.
An Awesome story, thanks for sharing it with us. I also wish more people knew about the real heroes.
Wow!! Awesome story!!! Thanks for sharing it CJ. Tim, sadly I have to agree with you. I wish it weren't so.
This is great! Thanks CJ for bringing these stories to us! It's sad but true that we don't see any of these in the media.