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\"Again and again, as the wounded were being evacuated, Williams exposed himself to enemy fire while carrying and loading casualties onto the helicopters,\" the Army said. \"He then continued to suppress numerous insurgent positions by directing commando fires [airstrikes], which allowed the patrol to evacuate the wounded and the dead without further casualties.\"

Williams described the day as \"one of the worst predicaments\" of his life but said the experience helped him through his career in special operations.

\"Remain level headed and focus on what needs to happen as opposed to what is happening,\" Williams told the Army.

Williams, now a 3rd Special Forces Group operations sergeant, enlisted in the Army under the 18X Special Forces enlistment program in September 2005. He has deployed multiples times in support of U.S. operations in Afghanistan and Africa.

He lives with his wife and son in North Carolina.

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