Van Taylor’s Platoon Sergeant Endorses Taylor
Posted by Taylor Team - Sun, March 28, 2010 at 01:45 PM
(Plano) – On March 26, 2003 Van Taylor led two platoons to rescue 31 wounded Marines during a counter-attack by several thousand Iraqis. For his service in Iraq, the Marine Corps awarded Van the Navy Commendation Medal with a “V” for Valor, the Combat Action Ribbon, and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Today marks the 7th anniversary of this rescue mission. In reflection of this day, Taylor’s Platoon Sergeant in Iraq and retired Marine Gunnery Sergeant Trace Bond remembers Taylor’s service, the rescue mission, and endorses Van Taylor candidacy for the State House. Of Taylor, Gunnery Sergeant Bond said:
When you serve with someone in combat, you get to know them in a very unique way, especially when they are your leader. I trust Van Taylor with my life. Every day we served together Van showed all the very best qualities of a strong leader: judgment, courage, dignity, honesty, drive, and genuine compassion for the men he led. After 16 years in Marine reconnaissance, I had served under many excellent officers, but the Lord blessed me with Van Taylor as my platoon commander in combat. Van's judgment and courage made the difference. When the order came down to send two teams forward of the brigade’s breaching site prior the main Iraq invasion, Capt. Taylor’s focus on rapid response planning allowed our platoon to get the job done. He dealt with our men fairly but constantly demanded they improve - he would not accept anything less than excellence. I will never forget the night of March 26, 2003, when Capt. Taylor led our platoon and another platoon to rescue 31 wounded Marines. That night, the Second Marine Regiment found itself with numerous casualties under heavy fire, unable to get their wounded out, and with so much sand in the air that helicopters could not fly. To rescue the wounded required driving at night with headlights blazing on a route that had just been heavily shelled and one of our teams had just gotten into a firefight. Since we had just been down that road a few hours earlier, we knew an encounter with the enemy was nearly certain. Van kept a rock solid composure during the mission despite the immense danger. I consider it a miracle that Iraqis did not hit us during this ground medevac. We rescued all the wounded and got them the medical attention they needed. The regimental commander personally thanked our platoon for rescuing the wounded. Every Marine and Sailor under Van's command that night received an award personally signed by our commanding General for participating in the rescue. The robust training regime pushed by Van before the war gave our platoon the skills we needed to defeat several ambushes by irregular Iraqi forces. Our platoon also provided direct support to Task Force 20 and part of our platoon participated in Task Force 20's reconnaissance for the rescue of PFC Jessica Lynch. Our platoon operated independently for days at a time relying solely on Van's judgment and leadership to guide us through challenging stressful situations. Van’s forthright leadership stands out in my mind as remarkable. I am proud to have served with him. I know that we need leaders like him in public service.
Our platoon accomplished every mission and we all came back to our families. It doesn’t get better than that.
-----
Gunnery Sergeant Trace Bond UMCR, Retired after serving 22 years in the US Marine Corps Reserves, 17 of which were in 4th Reconnaissance Battalion. He graduated from, School of Infantry, Scout Sniper School, Scout Swimmer & Scout Patrolling courses, Advanced Scout Sniper School, Martial Arts Instructor Course, Jungle Commando course, Airborne School and Scuba School. Gunnery Sergeant Bond served as Platoon Sergeant for 3rd Platoon, C Company, 4th Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, Task Force Tarawa, during the initial push to liberate Iraq in 2003. For his service, the Marine Corps awarded Trace the Navy Marine Corps Achievement Medal with a “V” for Valor, the Combat Action Ribbon, and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Share This!
