Posted on 12/12/2004 9:21:00 PM PST by cfhBAMA
SAN DIEGO — Sgt. Rafael Peralta is dead, but the story of his sacrifice to save fellow Marines will live long in Marine Corps lore.
In the fierce battle for the Iraqi town of Fallujah, Peralta, with gunshot wounds to his head and body, reached out and grabbed a grenade hurled by an insurgent, cradling it to his body to save others from the blast.
The explosion in the back room of a house injured one Marine, but four others managed to scramble to safety.
Peralta, 25, an immigrant from Mexico who enlisted the day he got his green-card work permit, was declared dead en route to a field hospital.
“If he hadn’t done what he did, a lot of us wouldn’t be seeing our families again,” said Lance Cpl. Travis J. Kaemmerer, who witnessed the blast.
Garry Morrison, the father of Lance Cpl. Adam Morrison, had trouble keeping his voice from breaking when he spoke of Peralta.
“He saved the life of my son and every Marine in that room,” Morrison said in a phone call from Seattle. “I just know one thing: God has a special place in heaven for Sgt. Peralta.”
Similar gratitude was expressed by family members of other Marines in Peralta’s unit who were close to the blast. The unit was Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division.
In a modest home in a blue-collar neighborhood here, the Peralta family feels pride but also grief, anger and confusion.
Rafael Peralta was the oldest son: strong, a weightlifter and athlete, head of the family since his father died in a workplace accident three years ago. He loved the Marine Corps.
He joined in 2000 and recently had re-enlisted. While in the Marines, he became a U.S. citizen. The only decorations on his bedroom walls are a copy of the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and a picture of his boot camp graduation.
As Peralta waited last month to begin the assault on the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah, he wrote a letter to his 14-year-old brother, Ricardo.
The letter arrived the day after several Marines and a Navy chaplain came to the Peralta home to notify the family of his death.
“We are going to destroy insurgents,” Peralta wrote. “Watch the news. . . . Be proud of me, bro. I’m going to do something I always wanted to do.
“You should be proud of being an American. Our father came to this country and became a citizen because it was the right place for our family to be. If anything happens to me, just remember I’ve already lived my life to the fullest.”
Peralta had left his mother, Rosa, with similar words. She said he told her, “I want you to be strong and take care of my brother and sisters because I don’t know if I’ll return.” His mother added, “I’m proud of him, but my heart is sad.”
Rafael Peralta had not been assigned to the Nov. 15 attack on Fallujah. Still, he volunteered.
As a scout, assigned to perimeter security, he could have stayed on the periphery. Instead, he took the lead as his platoon stormed a house in search of heavily armed insurgents known to be hiding in the neighborhood.
The house appeared empty. Then Peralta opened a door to a back room, and three insurgents fired their AK-47s. Marines fired back at near point-blank range with M-16 rifles and automatic weapons.
Hit several times in the chest and once in the head, Peralta went down and appeared dead. Insurgents tossed a “yellow, foreign-made, oval-shaped” grenade toward the Marines.
To the amazement of the other Marines, Peralta, apparently with his last bit of strength, “reached out and pulled the grenade into his body,” said Kaemmerer, a combat correspondent from the 1st Force Service Support Group assigned to the battalion. Peralta’s body absorbed most of the deadly fragments from the blast.
“Most of the Marines in the house were in the immediate area of the grenade,” Kaemmerer said. “Every one of us is grateful and will never forget the second chance at life Sgt. Peralta gave us.”
After the grenade blast, the house caught fire, and Marines repositioned in the street for a second assault. Within minutes, the three insurgents had been killed by Marines and Peralta’s body was recovered.
In the hours after the battle, Marines spoke quietly of Peralta’s heroism.
“You’re still here, don’t forget that,” Lance Cpl. Richard A. Mason told Kaemmerer. “Tell your kids, your grandkids, what Sgt. Peralta did for you and other Marines today.”
Even in their pain, Peralta’s family members are not surprised that he decided to lead from the front.
“My brother was very courageous,” Ricardo Peralta said. “He wasn’t scared of anyone or anything.”
Well said, and Amen!
Give him the MOH, and if Rall says anything, hunt his ass down and hurt him. Badly.
My Junior High School was named after a local resident who jumped on a grenade to shield his buddies from the blast and was killed...
He recieved the Medal of Honor for his bravery as should this United States Marine
Another truth is that this courageous and honorable man came here legally, and sought to serve rather than to take. May God rest his loving soul in eternal peace.
You have one helluva nerve posting this sort of Barbra Streisand on this thread. This Marine was a LEGAL immigrant and more of a man than you (presuming you are male) could ever HOPE to be if you live forever. Go crawl back under your putrid and disgusting rock.
There was another thread on FR earlier about this brave man.
Active service and veterans around the world take heed.
The Congress of the United States of America must properly recognize Sergeant Rafael Peralta, USMC for action above and beyond the call to duty.
God Bless and keep you, Rafael!
Bump!
He deserves the medal and more. I hope he is in heaven with almighty God, right this very moment.
Melting pot bump! What a beautiful soul!
Indeed. Bump!
Name the Freepers that say this.
What an outstanding young man. His sacrifice will never be forgotten by those brothers he saved and their families.
These are the stories the media should be focusing on, instead of trying to tear the military down.
Thanks for the ping Tonkin
I intend to.
There was a time when we had either experienced a vacuum of heroes or heroes we honored had no true hold to the title (sports figures, movie stars, etc.). Thankfully, those days are gone.
This new dawn of heroism arrived abruptly on one of the darkest days our young country had experienced in her 228 years as policemen, firemen and average everyday citizens looked the horror and the consequences of terrorism in the face and didn't flinch.
And now, we see it again - that flame of heroism, that heart of valor - expressed in the last moments of Sgt. Rafael Peralta's life. Without a single selfish thought, Sgt. Peralta took a live grenade and cradled it against his own body, thereby protecting his brothers in arms from harm. Truly, he looked the horror and consequences of terrorism in the face and didn't flinch.
Thank God for Sgt. Rafael Peralta those like him; our brave troops who fight these terrorists on their home turf so that we don't face them on our own.
One, two, three, four...
I love the Marine Corp!
And this is an ex-Squid talking.
I'm sure if the family agrees a place could be found for this man in Arlington.
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