Thread by @ArmorCollection

#BlackHistoryMonth: Staff Sergeant Stevon A. Booker

1/1 "My two basic responsibilities will always be uppermost in my mind—accomplishment of my mission and the welfare of my Soldiers."-The Army Non-Commissioned Officer's Creed

2/9 Stevon A. Booker, born in Michigan but raised in Pennsylvania, enlisted in the U.S. Army as a Tanker in 1988. Serving during the 1991 Gulf War, Booker stayed in the Army to make a career out of it.

3/9 By 2003, Staff Sergeant Booker was now a M1A1 Abrams tank commander in 1st Platoon, A Company, 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) as it advanced north from Kuwait to Baghdad in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

4/9 On 5 April 2003, A Company, 1-64 Armor led the first "Thunder Run" assault through Baghdad. Staff Sergeant Booker's tank, "Another Episode", and the other M1A1s of 1st Platoon took the brunt of enemy fire.

5/9 After extended action and enemy fire, the commander's .50 caliber and loader's 7.62 machine guns on "Another Episode" ceased to function. Staff Sergeant Booker could have sought protection inside the M1A1's turret.

6/9 However, he knew that the greatest threat to his tank, crew, and unit were dismounted anti-tank teams attempting to engage the tanks close in from behind cover.

7/9 With complete disregard for his self, Staff Sergeant Book stayed exposed in the commander's hatch his tank engaging enemy threats with his carbine and pistol, and at one point destroyed an enemy armored personnel carrier with a shoulder fired AT-4 missile.

8/9 During the entire fight, Staff Sergeant Booker remained on his radio to call out threats to the other tanks of his platoon. For eight kilometers, Booker fought exposed before enemy fire struck and killed him.

9/9 For his actions, the Staff Sergeant Booker was originally awarded the Silver Star. However, in 2019 his award was upgraded higher to the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor. #LestWeForget