News

116th sergeants earn Bronze Star medals for wartime support

  • Published
  • By Staff Sergeant Christopher Holmes
  • 116th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Two members of the 116th Air Control Wing's Explosive Ordinance Disposal team have been presented with bronze stars.

Master Sgts. John Bell and Greg Stephens were awarded the medals for their work in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom from October 2008 to April 2009 as members of the 447th Expeditionary Civil Engineering Squadron, Bravo Flight, Multi-National Corps-Iraq, Baghdad.

Master Sgt. Bell led more than 25 personnel in executing more than 800 combat missions under the threat of insurgent attacks to exploit, render-safe, recover and destroy improvised explosive devices.

"We worked with the 4th Brigade Combat Team of the (Army's) 10th Mountain Division and covered more than 190 square kilometers," Said Sergeant Bell.

Along with keeping the streets of Iraq IED free, Sergeant Stephens also worked with the Iraqi Army to retrieve notebooks with valuable information from a known bombing suspect.

"Based on his actions and the fact that he had lied to us about other facts regarding the case, when he told me the notebooks were only religious items I believed he was lying to try to keep coalition forces from finding the information that was in the books," he said.

As it turned out, the books contained notes on how to build bombs and other information helpful to the fight against insurgents in Iraq.

While Sergeant Bell took over a driver for Sergeant Stephens' team while he was at a field hospital, he got a chance to see first-hand just how quickly the Iraqis can respond and recover after an explosive attack.

"When we arrived on scene there was not even a trace of debris left and the concrete barriers had already been replaced," Sergeant Bell said. "I was quite amazed at how fast the Iraqis could move and get the small things accomplished in a timely manner."

Sergeant Stephens had to spend a few days in the hospital after getting sick from contaminated water.

"I spent a month in the hospital with dysentery from Iraqi sewer water seeping into our water at the JSS (Joint Security Station) I stayed at while supporting the 3rd and 4th BCT," Sergeant Stephens said.

While EOD is an important part of the war fighting mission, Sergeant Bell knows it's only one piece of the mission.

"I find it easy to praise my career field because I have seen first-hand the sacrifices that EOD teams have given, to include their lives," he said. "However, I have yet to find another AFSC that is not just as important in their own way. Planes don't fly without maintenance and operations personnel. They in turn don't sleep without services and FSS personnel to process their orders and ensure that their families are cared for while they are deployed."

Being awarded a medal as important as the bronze star is an honor for Sergeant Stephens.

"I am proud to have been in a position where I could bring honor to the Air Force, my wing, and my family," the former Marine said.

For Sergeant Bell, it's a chance to keep a tradition his father started during another war.

"I am sure that he is as proud of me as I was of him when I found out that he had been awarded the Bronze Star for combat action in Vietnam," he said about his father who died in 2004. "Will my sons, John, Griffin, and Garrett, follow in our footsteps? That is yet to be seen, and only time will tell."