Oregon Soldiers to Receive Army's New Combat Action Badge

Combat Action Badge Photo courtesy: Oregon National Guard

(SALEM) - Thirty-four Soldiers of the Oregon Army National Guard's former B Company, 52nd Engineer Battalion will receive Combat Action Badges at the Linn County Fairgrounds on Aug. 5th at 11:00 AM. The Soldiers earned the awards for encountering combat action while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The B Company, 52nd Engineer Battalion officially no longer exists, as they have been absorbed by other aspects of the Oregon National Guard. These soldiers faced many challenges during their deployment in Iraq, and the combat badge is one of many honors that have been bestowed upon these citizen soldiers.

Many of the Oregon Guard units have serious history under their belts. Much of it fairly recent history like Desert Storm and Vietnam, other stories hail from WWII and before.

The following Soldiers from the following cities earned the Combat Action Badge: Soldiers from Albany: Master Sgt. Fred U. Felde* Spc. Wesley B. Gamble* Spc. Robert J. Meston* Astoria: Staff Sgt. Lee A. Carrar Beaverton: Spc. Christopher W. Jones

Bend: Sgt. Brian J. Dooley Canby: Sgt. 1st Class Lisa A. Mesteth* Coos Bay: Spc. Crystal J. Adams Sgt. Timothy E. Cotter

Corvallis: Pfc. Nathan W. Nakis+

Dallas: Spc. Joseph R. Lillibridge* Eugene: Spc. Agbhijit Baburaj Federal Way, WA: Pfc. Roy L. Esquivel Hermiston: Spc. Marvin E. Jensen Jefferson: Spc. Timothy A. Roy Keizer: Master Sgt. Arthur Arroyo, jr. Lebanon: Sgt. 1st Class Robert A. Hackworth* Spc. Andrew I. McCready Spc. Christopher E. Rutter* Long Beach, WA: Spc. Viliufo L. Lopez* Medford: Spc. Luke D. Ertsgaard* Ocean Shores, WA: Spc. Christopher S. Furness Prineville: 1st Lt. Krystal L. Loverin Salem: Sgt. Mkesha L. Clayton Spc. Kevin D. Phelps Cpt. Marcus A. Williams Scio: Staff Sgt. Joseph N. Gassner Seaside: Sgt. James A. Ruks* Silverton: Spc. Brandon L. Pedigo Springfield: Spc. Brian M. Klopp* Stayton: Spc. Phillip T. Garelli* Tigard: Spc. Fred Lotfi, jr.* Tillamook: Spc. John R. King Troutdale: Spc. Brian R. Kirchner*

* -No longer with the unit + -Deceased: award will be presented posthumously

The following are the details of each incident from the Oregon National Guard's Public Affairs section:

On August 20th, 2003 the Bravo 52nd Engineers' operating base was hit by rocket fire. The platoon had been repairing roads in local villages during the day. The base was attacked around midnight and the rounds impacted in the unit's vehicle area, located approximately 100 meters from the unit's sleeping area. A search of the surrounding area in the morning revealed shrapnel from two 107mm Heavy Explosive Rockets.

On September 11th, 2003, while traveling in a four-vehicle convoy, Soldiers from the Bravo 52 Engineers were ambushed with small arms fire while enroute to LSA Diamondback from the Mosul Water Plant. The middle two vehicles, M916 Tractors with Water Distributors, were disabled. Spc. Jones, Pfc. Lillibridge, and Sgt. Dooley were wounded.

The lead vehicle moved away from the fire and went to Striker Base to get help. The trail vehicle with Staff Sgt. Carrar and Spc. Klopp entered the ambush area and evacuated the wounded soldiers before moving to Striker Base. The enemy disengaged before the Quick Reactionary Force arrived.

On November 6th, 2003, the enemy ambushed a four-vehicle convoy from the 52nd Engineer Battalion with an Improvised Explosive Device while they were enroute from LSA Diamondback in Mosul to Irbil, Iraq. The explosive device was composed of two 155mm Artillery rounds wired together.

The trail vehicle was severely damaged with Sgt. Haynes and Sgt. Thompson wounded in action [WIA] and Spc. Wolf killed in action [KIA]. The other three vehicles were within 150 meters of the blast and showered with debris.

The entire convoy stopped and secured a perimeter. After searching vehicles and medically evacuating the wounded, the convoy moved to LSA Diamondback.

The men and women of the 52nd Engineers were deployed to Iraq from March 10th, 2003 until February 29th, 2004. Upon return to the U.S., the unit inactivated and all records were sent to the Center of Military History.