Patriot of the Week: Maj. Nicholas Dockery
- ForAmerica
- 5 minutes ago
- 2 min read
This week's Patriot honor goes to a soldier who used his own body as a shield to save a wounded comrade, then fought his way back to becoming a Green Beret.
On June 18, President Trump awarded the Medal of Honor to retired Army Maj. Nicholas Dockery for actions that took place on October 2, 2012, in Afghanistan's Kapisa Province. Then a young second lieutenant leading a platoon alongside Afghan partner forces, Dockery found himself in a four-hour firefight after an estimated 150 Taliban fighters ambushed his unit near Forward Operating Base Tagab.
Dockery repeatedly crossed open, fire-swept ground to pull his scattered soldiers back together. When a Taliban grenade landed near one of his men, Dockery shoved him behind cover, taking the blast risk onto himself. Dazed and wounded, he kept fighting, cleared a compound crawling with enemy fighters, and found an unconscious American soldier being dragged away by the enemy. Dockery killed the fighters, performed CPR to bring the soldier back, and then shielded him with his own body while calling in mortar strikes to keep the Taliban off them both.
Dockery later earned his Green Beret, deployed to Afghanistan again, and became the only Army officer to receive a second Silver Star since 9/11. He retired from active duty in May 2026 and now runs a foundation that supports veterans dealing with the invisible wounds of war through art and equine therapy.
This is what real heroism looks like -- not a headline chasing a moment, but a soldier who gave everything for the man next to him and kept serving long after the shooting stopped. Salute Maj. Dockery, America.
Source: U.S. Army