Talking with Samuel Deeds!

Samuel Deeds was born in Bangor, ME on 2 Oct 1977. He graduated from Penobscot Valley High School in 1997.  Deeds served in the Marine Corps from June 1997- Oct 2011. His military education includes, Recruit Training, School of Infantry (Infantry training Battalion), Special Operations Training Group (Non-Lethal Weapons Course), Recruiter School, Convoy Operators Instructors Course, Stability and Support Operations Instructors Course, Unit Operations Center Course, MV-22 Basic Mechanics Course, Substance Abuse Control Officer Course, Unit Substance Abuse Manages Course and Equal Opportunity Representative Course. His units include 2nd Battalion 8th Marines, 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Recruiting Station Louisville, KY, Recruiting Sub-Station Florence, KY, 3rd Battalion 8th Marines, 6th Marine Regiment and Marine Medium Training Squadron 204. He deployed to Okinawa, Japan 1998/ Pohang, South Korea 1998/ Port-au-Prince, Haiti 1999 (Operation New Horizons)/ Thessaloniki, Greece 2000 (NATO Exercise Dynamic Mix)/ Port-au-Prince, Haiti 2004 (Operation Secure Tomorrow) and Iraq 2005 (Operation Iraqi Freedom). After 67 days in Iraq Deeds was injured by an improvised explosive device (IED) while warning his fellow Marines of the threat. Deeds had sustained a 1/3 open tibia fracture of the left tibia, two broken metacarpals in his left hand, multiple shrapnel wounds to the left thigh, left forearm, right groin and a grade two concussion. This was the second IED blast in just 30 days.  On September 11, 2008 while vacationing with family Deeds saved the lives of three distressed swimmers that were caught in a rip current of the coast of North Carolina. This was just five weeks after having an abdominal surgery earning him the Navy and Marine Corps, which is the highest award for heroism outside of combat. On October 1 2009 Deeds was promoted to his current rank of Gunnery Sergeant. Having under gone 30+ surgeries and procedures since 2005 and not being capable of performing the basic tasks of a Marine, GySgt Deeds was medically retired on October 1 2011.