Senior Airman Shea Dodson 

It was summer, 2005, and another hot and sunny day at Phoenix Base in Baghdad. Senior Airman Shea Dodson wanted to do more than his assigned administrative duties inside Baghdad’s “Green Zone.” The call was out for volunteers to provide security for ongoing convoys, so Airman Dodson raised his hand. After some intense just-in-time training, he was performing security detail for his first convoy.

On his first mission, Airman Dodson put his training to good use. When a suspected vehicle-born suicide bomber raced toward the convoy, he fired .50 caliber rounds into the engine block no fewer than four-times, disabling the vehicle.

During the same mission, his unit became mired in traffic near a high-rise development. His eagle eyes noticed movement above, and when he looked more carefully, he saw an Iraqi male armed with an AK-47 creeping toward the edge of a balcony overlooking the convoy. Airman Dodson immediately engaged with indirect warning fire from his M-16, hitting the wall next to the suspected insurgent’s head. The armed Iraqi dove for cover and never reappeared.

When the convoy arrived at its final destination, a children’s school, he continued with a complete security sweep of the perimeter houses to ensure it was clear. Airman Dodson remained on armed watch as his team handed out school supplies to the kids in the open courtyard adjacent to the school.

By 2 p.m. that same day, Airman Dodson was back at his desk, keeping track of critical data for the commanding general of the Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq – it was all in a day’s work for this dedicated Airman.