Brig. Gen. William Garrett, commander of the Southern European Task Force, pins a Silver Star medal on Spc. Dillon Bergstad on Thursday at Casmera Ederle in Vicenza, Italy. Bergstad earned the honor – the third-highest for soldiers for actions in combat – during a firefight Aug. 27, 2007, in Zerok district, Afghanistan. (Kent Harris / S&S)
VICENZA, Italy — The 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Battalion has known for almost a year that one of its own earned the Silver Star for gallantry in Afghanistan.
But it wasn’t until Thursday that Spc. Dillon Bergstad received the honor.
The medal erroneously was sent to the 82nd Airborne Division — which First Rock fell under in Afghanistan — while 1-503 was still in country.
The soldiers returned to Vicenza in June. The medal didn’t arrive until recently.
Not that Bergstad was complaining.
He said Thursday he can’t even recall when he first heard the news.
"The whole 15 months is just a blur now," he said with a crooked smile.
He and the other soldiers involved in the firefight won’t forget at least some details of the events of Aug. 27, 2007, though.
A mounted patrol consisting of seven vehicles from Headquarters and Headquarters Company and Company D was heading from Zerok Combat Outpost to the battalion’s headquarters at Orgun-E when it ran into an ambush.
About two dozen fighters armed with rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and armor-piercing bullets had the high ground and put the patrol under a heavy barrage of fire. Pfc. Thomas Wilson, who was in the turret of 1st Sgt. Mason Bryant’s vehicle, was killed.
The patrol’s other heavy weapons were soon out of the action. That left Bergstad firing away from his .50-caliber machine gun. And fighting for his life.
The four Humvees trapped in the ambush constantly stayed in motion to try to avoid making themselves easy targets. Still, Bergstad was knocked out of his position by two RPG rounds and a armor-piercing round that went through his right bicep.
He continued to fire away, though, until the ambushers broke off the engagement after the rest of the patrol entered the battle.
"Without him on the .50-caliber, we probably would have been a lot worse off," Bryant said.
Brig. Gen. William Garrett III, the commander of the Southern European Task Force, pinned the medal on Bergstad and praised his efforts and those of his fellow soldiers.
"As you are all aware, any given day we have this kind of action in Afghanistan," he said.
Still, Bergstad’s courage stands out.
"He displayed it in spades that day," Garrett said. "And that’s why we’re here recognizing him."
Bergstad has a two-year commitment left in the Army and is set to leave Vicenza in December. The native of North Bend, Ore., said he’s honored to receive the award. But he’s not planning to rest on his laurels.
"It’ll go on the shelf somewhere, then it’s back to work," he said.
