Courtesy Photo | Staff Sgt. Tony Cox, a native of Redmond, Ore., accepts his Combat Infantryman Badge...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq — Once, long ago, Staff Sgt. Tony Cox said he wanted to experience combat.
That was before he spent a year in Afghanistan; before he was pinned down by Taliban machine-gun fire in Afghanistan; before he deployed to Iraq with the 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Sustainment Brigade, 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary); before he was attacked with an improvised explosive device on the road in Iraq.
“I wanted to see combat,” Cox said. “The first time it was okay. The second time I didn’t want to do it again.”
The string of close calls came into sharp focus for Cox and his crewmates from Foxtrot Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Sustainment Command, 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) recently when they received Combat Infantryman Badges during a modest ceremony at Joint Base Balad.
Cox and his crew were recognized with CIBs for their actions during the IED ambush two months ago.
The Combat Infantryman Badge, created in the early days of World War II, recognizes the service and sacrifice of soldiers holding the Military Occupational Specialty of 11B.
Cox, Pfc. Chris Soderholm, a native of Baker City, Ore., and Spc. Maximillian Miller, a native of Dundee, Ore., all members of F Company, received CIBs from their commander, Capt. Max Arvidson, a native of Parma, Idaho.
“It is a huge honor, and I’m honored to be able to do it,” said Arvidson. “It is pretty neat. I’m very proud of them.”
By any stretch of the imagination, Cox is a combat veteran, but he wears the distinction uneasily. He understands the risks of combat, both inside of the theater of operation and back at home. Yet he said he is also proud to be honored with a CIB.
“The CIB is one of those awards deep down you want to get, and deep down you don’t want to get,” he said. “It means, really, something has happened to you.”
The night of the IED strike continues to resonate in Cox’s mind.
“I still think about it every day,” he said. “Our ticket came very close to being punched.”
He added that first-rate equipment and solid training proved to be the difference for him and his crew during the IED attack.
Cox is already looking down the road toward the end of the deployment in terms of the long-term impact of a tour of duty on his fellow soldiers.
Cox said he is proud of his CIB, but also understands the price that can come with the award.
“I hope I’m never in a position again where someone can earn something like this,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 03.15.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 03.28.2011 02:45 |
| Story ID: | 67831 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 297 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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