Soldier awarded Silver Star for valor

Staff Sgt. Chad Malmberg became the first Minnesota National Guard member to be awarded the Silver Star since World War II.

By Photograph by Joey McLeister, Star Tribune

Last update: September 23, 2007 - 12:52 AM

Staff Sgt. Chad Malmberg became the first Minnesota National Guard member to be awarded the Silver Star since World War II.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty pinned the medal on the 27-year-old soldier from St. Paul at a ceremony on Saturday attended by about 1,000 of his fellow soldiers and their families at RiverCentre in St. Paul.

"He's a hero, no question about it," the governor said.

Malmberg led a fierce 50-minute firefight south of Baghdad to defend a convoy escort team. No one in his crew was killed or injured in the fight with 30 or more insurgents eight months ago.

"I remember when I was a little kid my dad telling me, 'It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but it's the size of the fight in the dog.' That day, we had a lot of fight in us," he said.