President Obama pinned the Medal of Honor on Army Staff Sgt. Ty Michael Carter during an Aug. 27 ceremony in the East Room of the White House. Carter became the second soldier who fought in the Oct. 3, 2009, Battle of Kamdesh in Afghanistan to receive the nation’s highest award for valor in combat. Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha, a comrade who also took part in the firefight at Combat Post Keating, received his Medal of Honor Feb. 11. According to official records, Carter braved heavy small-arms and mortar fire while supplying comrades with ammunition, providing suppressive fire in the process. He also dropped his weapon and carried one wounded soldier to medics, again in the face of heavy enemy fire. At the time, Carter was a scout with the 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Carson, Colo. The surviving soldiers from Carter’s unit, and family members of the eight soldiers who died in the 13-hour firefight, were in the audience as Obama draped the medal around Carter’s neck. Obama then remarked that Carter deserved equal praise for his willingness to step forward and seek help for post-traumatic stress disorder upon his return home. “He’s as tough as they come. And if he can find the courage and the strength to not only seek help, but also to speak out about it, to take care of himself and stay strong, then so can you,” Obama said.