Obama To Award Medal Of Honor To Local Green Beret
WASHINGTON (AP/WBBM) - President Barack Obama today is awarding posthumously the nation's highest medal for gallantry to a Green Beret formerly from Wheaton, Ill. who was killed in a Taliban ambush.
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The parents of Army Staff Sgt. Robert Miller will accept the Medal of Honor from Obama in an a ceremony in the East Room of the White House Wednesday.
Miller was a graduate of Wheaton North High School.
He was leading a patrol of U.S. and Afghan troops near the Pakistan border on Jan. 25, 2008, when insurgents opened fire. Despite being wounded twice in the chest, he continued firing and hurling grenades, ultimately sacrificing his life to protect his comrades.
Thursday is the ninth anniversary of the bombardment that heralded the post-9/11 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. Since then, more than 1,200 U.S. troops have perished in the conflict, now America's longest since Vietnam.
Here's the White House's biography of Miller:
"Robert Miller was born on October 14, 1983, in Harrisburg, Pa. He graduated from Wheaton North High School, Wheaton IL. Shortly after his family moved to Oviedo, Florida, he enlisted in the United States Army as a Special Forces candidate in August 2003. He attended Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Benning, Georgia and later became a Green Beret in 2005. Staff Sergeant Miller served as a weapons sergeant in Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), which is based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
"His military decorations include: Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal with 'V' Device, Army Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, NATO Medal, Special Forces Tab, Ranger Tab and Parachute Badge.
"He is survived by his parents, Phil and Maureen Miller; brothers Thomas, Martin and Edward; and sisters Joanna, Mary, Therese and Patricia."
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