Christopher A Celiz
Christopher, also known as Chris, was born on the 12th of January 1986, in Summerville, South Carolina, where he grew up and allegedly appeared as an extra in the movie The Patriot. He had worked at a BI-LO grocery store along with a girl that he had met in high school, named Katie. Chris would take her coat (and return it) from its hanger every day for about a week until the last time when he returned it with rose petals in the pockets. After high school, he attended The Citadel, a public senior military college in Charleston, but left to enlist in the US Army in September of 2006. He and Katie were married in 2007 and Chris attended basic and advanced individual trainings at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri, where he became a combat engineer. He then was assigned to Fort Hood, Texas, where he was assigned to Company E, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, and then to Company C, Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade, both of the 1st Cavalry Division. Chris then transferred to the 530th Engineer Clearance Company, 92nd Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, at Fort Stewart, Georgia, then as a sapper squad leader and a platoon sergeant. By 2013, Chris had already been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan before being assigned to the 1st Ranger Battalion. After attending and completing the training required to become a Ranger, Chris volunteered for a secret team of Rangers that were attached to the CIA and carried out their anti-insurgent missions along side Afghan forces, formerly known as Omega and now ANSOF. These missions had ramped up in 2018 and it was Chris’s actions on his fifth deployment that would earn him The Medal of Honor. The citation reads:
Sergeant First Class Christopher A. Celiz distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while engaged with the enemy in Paktia Province, Afghanistan, on July 12th, 2018. As the leader of a special purpose unit comprised of partnered forces and members of the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Sergeant First Class Celiz led an operation to clear an area of enemy forces and thereby disrupt future attacks against the government of Afghanistan and allied forces. Shortly after his team reached their final objectives, a large enemy force attacked, placed effective fire on him and his team, preventing them from maneuvering to counterattack. Realizing the danger the attack posed to his team and the operation, Sergeant First Class Celiz voluntarily exposed himself to intense enemy machine-gun and small-arms fire to retrieve and employ a heavy weapon system, thereby allowing U.S. and partnered forces to regain the initiative, maneuver to a secure location, and begin treatment of a critically wounded partnered force member. As a medical evacuation helicopter arrived, it was immediately engaged by accurate and sustained enemy fire. Knowing how critical it was to quickly load the casualty, Sergeant First Class Celiz willingly exposed himself to heavy enemy fire to direct and lead the evacuation. As the casualty moved from a position of cover and out into intense enemy fire, Sergeant First Class Celiz made a conscious effort to ensure his body acted as a physical shield to his team carrying the casualty and the crew of the aircraft. As the casualty was loaded and Sergeant First Class Celiz’s team returned to cover, he alone remained at the aircraft, returning a high volume of fire and constantly repositioning himself to act as a physical shield to the aircraft and its crew. With his final reposition, Sergeant First Class Celiz placed himself directly between the cockpit and the enemy, ensuring the aircraft was able to depart. As the helicopter lifted off, Sergeant First Class Celiz was hit by enemy fire. Fully aware of his own injury but understanding the peril to the aircraft from the intense enemy machine gun fire, Sergeant First Class Celiz motioned to the aircraft to depart rather than remain behind to load him. His selfless actions saved the life of the evacuated partnered force member and almost certainly prevented further casualties among other members of his team and the aircrew. Throughout the entire engagement, Sergeant First Class Celiz significantly changed the course of battle by repeatedly placing himself in extreme danger to protect his team, defeat the enemy, and it ultimately cost him his life. Sergeant First Class Celiz’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
Additional details don’t seem to exist due to the confidential nature of the missions and organization. It is known that Chris was recovered and he died in a medical facility. A funeral service was held at the Congregation Mickve Israel, one of the oldest synagogues in the US, and it was reported that over three hundred people showed up to attend the service. Three and half years later, the White House announced that Chris would be awarded the Medal of Honor and on the 16th of December 2021, Katie and their daughter Shannon, received his Medal of Honor from President Biden. Christopher Andrew Celiz was 32 years old when he died and at this time, his final resting place is unknown. He is one of only 18 Jewish Medal of Honor recipients; the only one from the Global War on Terrorism.
