Changing World

In September 1994, Yoshitani was a Military Police platoon leader to a 1991 military coup in Haiti. Yoshitani was part of a peacekeeping force that confiscated more than 30,000 firearms, helped maintain a secure and stable environment, provided technical expertise and logistical support for democratic elections nationwide and assisted in the training of a new civilian police force.

On June 6, 2007, Hernandez, of the 4th Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, led a joint American-Iraqi patrol on the streets of Baghdad. They were ambushed as soon as they left their security station. Hernandez and two of his Iraqi counterparts were injured. Shot in the leg, Hernandez nevertheless braved continuing hostile fire to rescue his Iraqi comrades and carry them to safety. He received the Silver Star for his actions.

After returning from a deployment to Iraq In 2007, Cartwright volunteered to become a canine handler. He was partnered with Isaac, a black Labrador Retriever, at the Military Working Dog Program or “Dog School” at Ft. Leonard Wood in Missouri. The two became a close-knit team after completing the five-and-a-half month training program. Since then, Cartwright and Isaac have served two tours of duty in Afghanistan locating explosive devices planted by terrorists near roads, hospitals, schools and military facilities.

McCaffrey graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1964 and served two tours in Vietnam. Wounded in combat three times and recognized for valor four times, McCaffrey received two Distinguished Service Crosses and two Silver Stars. In Operation Desert Storm, McCaffrey commanded the 24th Infantry Division, which protected the flank of the “left hook” around the Iraqi defenses.

Askew, a 2005 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, started his career as an armor officer with the 1st Armored Division and served two tours in Iraq. On December 18, 2011, he commanded the final serial, or convoy, of combat vehicles to leave Iraq. The convoy crossed the border with little military fanfare, but remarkable media coverage. Just moments after the last vehicle crossed the line, the border gates closed, ending U.S. Forces Iraq mission after nearly nine years.