thedrifter
11-22-06, 06:06 PM
November 22, 2006
Lejeune combat instructor receives Silver Star
Staff sergeant says he wears it for his Marines
By Trista Talton
Staff writer
CAMP GEIGER, N.C. — Not a day goes by that Staff Sgt. Richard Pillsbury doesn’t think about the Marines he led, and lost, in Iraq in 2004.
Now, he wears a Silver Star — presented to him Wednesday for his heroism as a platoon commander in Fallujah — in their honor.
“It’s very humbling to be put in this position,” he said. “You really don’t wear this for yourself. You wear it for those Marines.”
Pillsbury, 38, a combat instructor at the Infantry Unit Leaders Course at Camp Lejeune, N.C., has been a leader throughout his Marine career.
When he enlisted in 1994 at the age of 26, he was expected to assume a leadership role among the younger recruits at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. Drill instructors looked to him to help encourage homesick recruits. After all, Pillsbury knew what it was like — he had joined the Army fresh out of high school to serve with the 82nd Airborne Division.
Leadership came naturally on Nov. 10, 2004, after his platoon commander with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, was injured in Fallujah. Pillsbury remembers following the blood trail his lieutenant left behind, his hand badly injured in a track lid.
He convinced his platoon commander to leave, subsequently taking the lieutenant’s role and leading his Marines into what turned into two weeks of intense house-to-house fighting.
His citation reads, “Leading with great skill, presence of mind and calm effectiveness, he repeatedly directed his Marines and supporting arms in attacks on many buildings, under heavy enemy fires, and in direct, close combat.”
During one firefight, a 500-pound bomb landed near a building he was in, killing three Marines. Pillsbury evacuated his men while continuing to fight.
He lost another Marine on Nov. 15 when his squad came under small-arms and machine-gun fire while attempting to clear a home.
“Realizing that he could easily lose his entire platoon piece by piece if they continued to enter the house, he utilized the tank main gun to destroy the house and insurgents,” his citation states.
Afterward, he went back into the house to kill the remaining enemy fighters and retrieved the fallen Marine’s body.
Two years later, Pillsbury humbly accepted the military’s third-highest award given for valor in the face of the enemy.
He earned his first combat decoration for valor in Mosul, where he repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to draw attention away from Marines in vulnerable positions.
His other awards include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with combat V, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with four gold stars, Army Achievement Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with four bronze stars and the Army Good Conduct Medal.
“Today is a good day for our hero,” said Maj. Gen. Walter Gaskin, commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division and II Marine Expeditionary Force forward. “Our nation, our Corps, can’t thank him enough for what he did. That day, that time, Staff Sgt. Pillsbury was ready for what happened. He deserves all of our recognition. He deserves our praise.”
Pillsbury shares what happened during those weeks, as well as his combat experiences in 2003 while assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, with the leathernecks he teaches now.
“I talk about the things that I’ve seen,” he said. “As an instructor, it helps to hear about the things that they’ve seen.”
When his thoughts fill with memories of the winter of 2004, some days, he said, are better than others. But one thing remains true.
“For me, personally, there’s not a day that I don’t think about those Marines,” he said. “They were the most phenomenal group of Marines I’ve ever had.”
Ellie
Lejeune combat instructor receives Silver Star
Staff sergeant says he wears it for his Marines
By Trista Talton
Staff writer
CAMP GEIGER, N.C. — Not a day goes by that Staff Sgt. Richard Pillsbury doesn’t think about the Marines he led, and lost, in Iraq in 2004.
Now, he wears a Silver Star — presented to him Wednesday for his heroism as a platoon commander in Fallujah — in their honor.
“It’s very humbling to be put in this position,” he said. “You really don’t wear this for yourself. You wear it for those Marines.”
Pillsbury, 38, a combat instructor at the Infantry Unit Leaders Course at Camp Lejeune, N.C., has been a leader throughout his Marine career.
When he enlisted in 1994 at the age of 26, he was expected to assume a leadership role among the younger recruits at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. Drill instructors looked to him to help encourage homesick recruits. After all, Pillsbury knew what it was like — he had joined the Army fresh out of high school to serve with the 82nd Airborne Division.
Leadership came naturally on Nov. 10, 2004, after his platoon commander with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, was injured in Fallujah. Pillsbury remembers following the blood trail his lieutenant left behind, his hand badly injured in a track lid.
He convinced his platoon commander to leave, subsequently taking the lieutenant’s role and leading his Marines into what turned into two weeks of intense house-to-house fighting.
His citation reads, “Leading with great skill, presence of mind and calm effectiveness, he repeatedly directed his Marines and supporting arms in attacks on many buildings, under heavy enemy fires, and in direct, close combat.”
During one firefight, a 500-pound bomb landed near a building he was in, killing three Marines. Pillsbury evacuated his men while continuing to fight.
He lost another Marine on Nov. 15 when his squad came under small-arms and machine-gun fire while attempting to clear a home.
“Realizing that he could easily lose his entire platoon piece by piece if they continued to enter the house, he utilized the tank main gun to destroy the house and insurgents,” his citation states.
Afterward, he went back into the house to kill the remaining enemy fighters and retrieved the fallen Marine’s body.
Two years later, Pillsbury humbly accepted the military’s third-highest award given for valor in the face of the enemy.
He earned his first combat decoration for valor in Mosul, where he repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to draw attention away from Marines in vulnerable positions.
His other awards include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with combat V, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with four gold stars, Army Achievement Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with four bronze stars and the Army Good Conduct Medal.
“Today is a good day for our hero,” said Maj. Gen. Walter Gaskin, commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division and II Marine Expeditionary Force forward. “Our nation, our Corps, can’t thank him enough for what he did. That day, that time, Staff Sgt. Pillsbury was ready for what happened. He deserves all of our recognition. He deserves our praise.”
Pillsbury shares what happened during those weeks, as well as his combat experiences in 2003 while assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, with the leathernecks he teaches now.
“I talk about the things that I’ve seen,” he said. “As an instructor, it helps to hear about the things that they’ve seen.”
When his thoughts fill with memories of the winter of 2004, some days, he said, are better than others. But one thing remains true.
“For me, personally, there’s not a day that I don’t think about those Marines,” he said. “They were the most phenomenal group of Marines I’ve ever had.”
Ellie