Jason Lee Dunham was a Corporal in the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 who earned the Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...

 while serving with 3rd Battalion 7th Marines

3rd Battalion 7th Marines

The 3rd Battalion 7th Marine Regiment is an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. They are based at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms and consist of approximately 800 Marines. The battalion falls under the command of the 7th Marine Regiment and the 1st...

 during the Iraq War. While on a patrol in Husaybah

Husaybah

Husaybah is an Iraqi city on the Euphrates river in Al-Anbar province, close to the Syrian border....

, his unit was attacked and he deliberately covered an enemy grenade

Falling on a grenade

Falling on a grenade refers to the deliberate act of using one's body to cover a live time-fused hand grenade, absorbing the explosion and fragmentation in an effort to save the lives of others nearby...

 to save nearby Marines. When it exploded Dunham was seriously injured and died eight days later.

Dunham is the first Marine to receive the Medal of Honor for actions in the War on Terror

War on Terror

The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...

, and the first Marine to receive the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

.
Jason Dunham was born November 10, 1981 in Scio, New York

Scio, New York

Scio is a town in Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 1,914 at the 2000 census. The town is in the southern half of the county and north of the Village of Wellsville.- History :...

 and lived there his entire life with his parents Dan and Deb, and two brothers and a sister.