Heroes in the War on Terror

Stars and Stripes honors medal of valor winners. A sample:

[Master Sgt. Suran Sar] calls the Army “his home,” and considering his family history, its no empty sentiment.

As a boy in Cambodia, he grew up during the reign of the Khmer Rouge and suffered through his father’s imprisonment and the execution of his older brother. His mother and two other brothers died from starvation. Sar said when he arrived in the United States in 1981, he had no family and no money.

He joined the Army in 1986, planning to spend a few years to earn money for college, but said his commanders quickly became his close friends and convinced him to stay in. They pushed him toward the special forces, and he had conducted operations in Africa, Kosovo and Afghanistan before last spring’s second tour in Asia.