A former corporal is to be the first living Marine to receive the Medal of Honor for actions in Afghanistan or Iraq, the White House announced. Dakota Meyer, now a sergeant in the inactive ready reserve, is to receive the highest U.S. military honor from President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony Sept. 15, the press officer announced Friday. Meyer was nominated for the honor after he retrieved the bodies of three Marines killed by insurgents in Kunar province Sept. 9, 2009.
Meyer was born in Columbia, Ky., and enlisted in the Marines after graduating from Green County High School in 2006. He was deployed to Iraq in 2007 and to Afghanistan in 2009 and completed his active duty service in 2010.
