Jeff Struecker
Encyclopedia
Jeff Struecker is an author and former U.S. Army
Ranger
who was involved in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993. He also participated in the 1989 invasion
of Panama
(Operation Just Cause) and in Kuwait
during Operation Desert Storm. Struecker has co-authored four published books.
to Platoon Sergeant
. He would go on to win the Best Ranger Competition in 1996 with partner SPC Isaac Gmazel.
Struecker was also recognized in 1998 with the U.S. Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps
(ROTC) Noncommissioned Officer of the Year.
In the film based on the battle, Black Hawk Down, he is portrayed by Brian Van Holt
.
of the 75th Ranger Regiment
. Struecker retired from active military service at the end of January 2011.
, Master Parachutist Badge, Pathfinder Badge, Master Military Freefall Parachutist Badge, Bronze Star with Valor device
and two oak leaf cluster
s, Meritorious Service Medal
, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal
with bronze service star
, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
with bronze service star, Southwest Asia Service Medal
with bronze service star, Afghanistan Campaign Medal
, Iraq Campaign Medal
, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
, Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon
, Kuwait Liberation Medal
, Joint Meritorious Unit Award
, Valorous Unit Award
, Ranger Tab
, and the German Parachutist Badge. Other awards not shown below include British Parachutist Wings and Thai Parachutist Wings.:
, a church where he and his family had been members since 2007.Struecker has also continued to author books and he speaks regularly to audiences across the United States about his experiences and about his Christian
faith.
in Louisville, Kentucky
, and a Bachelor of Science Degree and Associate of Science Degree from Troy State University in Troy, Alabama
.
He is married to his wife Dawn and has five children.
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Ranger
United States Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers are elite members of the United States Army. Rangers have served in recognized U.S. Army Ranger units or have graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School...
who was involved in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993. He also participated in the 1989 invasion
Invasion
An invasion is a military offensive consisting of all, or large parts of the armed forces of one geopolitical entity aggressively entering territory controlled by another such entity, generally with the objective of either conquering, liberating or re-establishing control or authority over a...
of Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
(Operation Just Cause) and in Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
during Operation Desert Storm. Struecker has co-authored four published books.
Enlisted service
Enlisted in the Army in September 1987 at the age of 18, Struecker served ten years in the 75th Ranger Regiment in positions ranging from Ranger Reconnaissance SpecialistSpecialist (rank)
Specialist is one of the four junior enlisted ranks in the U.S. Army, just above Private First Class and equivalent in pay grade to Corporal. Unlike Corporals, Specialists are not considered junior non-commissioned officers...
to Platoon Sergeant
Platoon Sergeant
In many militaries, a platoon sergeant is the senior enlisted member of a platoon, who advises and supports the platoon's commanding officer in leading the unit.-Singapore:...
. He would go on to win the Best Ranger Competition in 1996 with partner SPC Isaac Gmazel.
Struecker was also recognized in 1998 with the U.S. Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Reserve Officers' Training Corps
The Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a college-based, officer commissioning program, predominantly in the United States. It is designed as a college elective that focuses on leadership development, problem solving, strategic planning, and professional ethics.The U.S...
(ROTC) Noncommissioned Officer of the Year.
Battle of Mogadishu
In the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, Struecker was a 24-year-old Sergeant and squad leader assigned to Task Force Ranger as a part of the 75th Ranger Regiment.In the film based on the battle, Black Hawk Down, he is portrayed by Brian Van Holt
Brian Van Holt
-Early life:Van Holt was born in Waukegan, Illinois and raised in California. Despite his Dutch surname, he is of mainly Scotch-Irish ancestry. Van Holt has a degree in Sociology from UCLA. At 18 years of age, he struck the perfect image of a Huntington Beach, California surfer...
.
Commissioned service
After his enlisted service ended in April 2000, Struecker went on to graduate from seminary and became commissioned as a Chaplain. As Chaplain, Struecker served multiple tours in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq. Struecker's final military assignment was Chaplain with the Regimental Special Troops BattalionSpecial Troops Battalion
A Special Troops Battalion is an organic unit of a modular brigade, Division , corps or higher echelon United States Army organization...
of the 75th Ranger Regiment
75th Ranger Regiment (United States)
The 75th Ranger Regiment , also known as Rangers, is a Special Operations light infantry unit of the United States Army. The Regiment is headquartered in Fort Benning, Georgia with battalions in Fort Benning, Hunter Army Airfield and Joint Base Lewis-McChord...
. Struecker retired from active military service at the end of January 2011.
Awards and decorations
Some of Struecker's military awards and decorations include the Combat Infantryman BadgeCombat Infantryman Badge
The Combat Infantryman Badge is the U.S. Army combat service recognition decoration awarded to soldiers—enlisted men and officers holding colonel rank or below, who personally fought in active ground combat while an assigned member of either an infantry or a Special Forces unit, of brigade size...
, Master Parachutist Badge, Pathfinder Badge, Master Military Freefall Parachutist Badge, Bronze Star with Valor device
Valor device
The Valor device is an award of the United States military which is a bronze attachment to certain medals to indicate that it was received for valor...
and two oak leaf cluster
Oak leaf cluster
An oak leaf cluster is a common device which is placed on U.S. Army and Air Force awards and decorations to denote those who have received more than one bestowal of a particular decoration. The number of oak leaf clusters typically indicates the number of subsequent awards of the decoration...
s, Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal
The Meritorious Service Medal is a senior level military decoration presented to denote acts of meritorious service worthy of recognition. This medal can be awarded in a combat or non- combat theatre...
, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal
The National Defense Service Medal is a military service medal of the United States military originally commissioned by President Dwight D. Eisenhower...
with bronze service star
Service star
A service star, also referred to as a battle star, campaign star, or engagement star, is an attachment to a United States military decoration which denotes participation in military campaigns or multiple bestowals of the same award. Service stars are typically issued for campaign medals, service...
, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States military, which was first created in 1961 by Executive Order of President John Kennedy...
with bronze service star, Southwest Asia Service Medal
Southwest Asia Service Medal
The Southwest Asia Service Medal is a military award of the United States armed forces which was created by order of President George H.W. Bush on March 12, 1991. The award is intended to recognize those military service members who performed duty during the years of the Persian Gulf War...
with bronze service star, Afghanistan Campaign Medal
Afghanistan Campaign Medal
The Afghanistan Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States military which was created by Executive Order 13363 of President George W. Bush on November 29, 2004. The Afghanistan Campaign Medal was designed by the U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry....
, Iraq Campaign Medal
Iraq Campaign Medal
The Iraq Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States armed forces which was created by Executive Order 13363 of President George W. Bush on November 29, 2004. The Iraq Campaign Medal was designed by the U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry....
, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal is a United States armed forces military award created by George W. Bush on March 12, 2003 by Executive Order 13289. It recognizes those military service members who have deployed overseas in direct service to the War on Terror from September 11,...
, Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon
Army Service Ribbon
The Army Service Ribbon is a military decoration of the United States Army that was established by the Secretary of the Army on 10 April 1981 as announced in Department of the Army General Order 15, dated 10 October 1990....
, Kuwait Liberation Medal
Kuwait Liberation Medal
The Kuwait Liberation Medal is a military service medal of several countries. The medal is issued in different versions for each country, those being:*Kuwait Liberation Medal *Kuwait Liberation Medal *Kuwait Liberation Medal...
, Joint Meritorious Unit Award
Joint Meritorious Unit Award
The Joint Meritorious Unit Award is a military award that was established on June 4, 1981 by Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger and was implemented by Department of Defense Directive 1348.27 dated July 22, 1982...
, Valorous Unit Award
Valorous Unit Award
The Valorous Unit Award is the second highest unit decoration which may be bestowed upon a U.S. Army unit and is considered the unit equivalent of the Silver Star...
, Ranger Tab
Ranger Tab
The Ranger Tab is a service school military decoration of the United States Army signifying completion of the 61-day long Ranger School course in small-unit infantry combat tactics in woodland, mountain, and swamp operations. In December 2009 a British NCO earned the Ranger tab...
, and the German Parachutist Badge. Other awards not shown below include British Parachutist Wings and Thai Parachutist Wings.:
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Post-military career
Immediately following his retirement from the military, Struecker became an Associate Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Columbus, GeorgiaColumbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
, a church where he and his family had been members since 2007.Struecker has also continued to author books and he speaks regularly to audiences across the United States about his experiences and about his Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
faith.
Education and personal life
Struecker earned a Master of Divinity Degree from the Southern Baptist Theological SeminarySouthern Baptist Theological Seminary
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary , located in Louisville, Kentucky, is the oldest of the six seminaries affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention . The seminary was founded in 1859, at Greenville, South Carolina. After being closed during the Civil War, it moved in 1877 to Louisville...
in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, and a Bachelor of Science Degree and Associate of Science Degree from Troy State University in Troy, Alabama
Troy, Alabama
Troy is a city in Pike County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,003. Troy experienced a growth spurt of over 4,000+ people since 2000. The city is the county seat of Pike County....
.
He is married to his wife Dawn and has five children.
Published books
- The Road To Unafraid: How the Army's Top Ranger Faced Fear and Found Courage through Black Hawk Down and Beyond (2006) ISBN 0849900603
- Certain Jeopardy (2009) ISBN 0805448535
- Blaze of Glory: A Novel (2010) ISBN 0805448543
- Fallen Angel: A Novel (2011) ISBN 1433671409