Medal of Honor: William Kyle Carpenter – Afghanistan – November 21, 2010

Name: William Kyle Carpenter
Rank: Lance Corporal
Organization: U.S. Marine Corps
Unit: Company F, 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 1, 1st Marine Division (Forward)
Place and Date: Marjah District, Helmand Province, Afghanistan – 21 November 2010
Entered Service At: Columbia, South Carolina
Born: October 17, 1989 – Flowood, Mississippi
Departed: Survived
Accredited To: South Carolina

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Summary of Action

In November 2010, Marines of 2/9 were establishing Patrol Base Dakota — a small, exposed foothold built to disrupt Taliban activity and protect the local population in the Marjah District. After only two days on site, the position remained vulnerable to attack. On the afternoon of November 21, Lance Corporal Kyle Carpenter and a fellow Marine manned a rooftop security post overlooking the settlement and nearby fields.

The enemy struck suddenly. Grenades arced over the compound walls, landing dangerously close to the Marines’ elevated fighting position. One grenade landed inside the sandbagged post — at their feet, with no room to maneuver and no time to escape.

In that instant, Carpenter acted without hesitation. Fully aware of the consequences, he lunged toward the grenade, placing his body between the blast and his fellow Marine. The explosion shattered his jaw, destroyed his right eye, and inflicted devastating trauma across his body — but his selfless action spared the life of the Marine beside him.

In the aftermath, bleeding heavily and barely conscious, Carpenter remained calm as his platoon rallied to stabilize him. His recovery would become one of the most remarkable in Marine Corps history — but the heroism that defined him occurred in that split-second decision on a rooftop in Marjah, when he chose another man’s life over his own.

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Medal of Honor Citation

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an Automatic Rifleman with Company F, 2d Battalion, 9th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 1, 1st Marine Division (Forward), I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom on 21 November 2010. Lance Corporal Carpenter was a member of a platoon-sized coalition force, comprised of two reinforced Marine squads partnered with an Afghan National Army squad. The platoon had established Patrol Base Dakota two days earlier in a small village in the Marjah District in order to disrupt enemy activity and provide security for the local Afghan population. Lance Corporal Carpenter and a fellow Marine were manning a rooftop security position on the perimeter of Patrol Base Dakota when the enemy initiated a daylight attack with hand grenades, one of which landed inside their sandbagged position. Without hesitation, and with complete disregard for his own safety, Lance Corporal Carpenter moved toward the grenade in an attempt to shield his fellow Marine from the deadly blast. When the grenade detonated, his body absorbed the brunt of the explosion, severely wounding him but saving the life of his fellow Marine. By his undaunted courage, bold fighting spirit, and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of almost certain death, Lance Corporal Carpenter reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.