Army Spc. Ross McGinnis was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for saving the lives of four soldiers in Adhamiya, Iraq, when he flung himself on a hand grenade tossed into their Humvee. Instead of jumping out of the vehicle, McGinnis threw his back over the grenade, which exploded and killed him instantly. He was 19 during the attack in December 2006.
“Ross was a hero.... He was honestly the type of soldier that was trustworthy, that was reliable, that was dependable before combat. He loved doing what he was doing,” said Ian Newland, one of the soldiers McGinnis saved.
Bush presented the award to McGinnis’s parents in July 2008, during a ceremony at the White House.
