Cpl. Jacob Cogswell put his Marine Corps water training to heroic use to save a drowning teen in the Oneida River in upstate New York last summer. Cogswell recently received the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal for his actions.
Pentagon officials said the operation was risky due to the unpredictable nature of the fighting, but it took less than an hour for the Marines to get all embassy personnel out without a shot fired and there were no serious injuries.