10 On February 29, 2020, Sgt. First Class Dustin Dearborn, a Vermont National Guard instructor at the Army Mountain Warfare School, responded to an emergency call from State Police to assist in the rescue of two skiers lost at night, in deteriorating weather near the Stowe Mountain ski area.
Dearborn never imagined that 16 months later, Vermont State Governor Phil Scott would decorate him with the Soldier’s Medal, one the military’s highest honors, awarded only for acts of heroism not involving conflict with an armed enemy.
“It should be no surprise that a member of the Vermont National Guard would earn such a recognition, that commitment to service and community, that sense of duty is engrained in every member of the Guard,” Scott said.