 Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Medal of Honor Induction ceremony in honor of Staff Sergeant Travis W. Atkins. Staff Sergeant Atkins was presented posthumously our nation's highest and most prestigious award for valor by the President of the United States, the Medal of Honor. This morning he will formally be inducted into the Pentagon's most sacred place, the Hall of Heroes. Our hosts for today's ceremony are, performing the duties of the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Honorable David L. Norquist, the Secretary of the Army, the Honorable Mark T. Esper, the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, General James C. McConville, and the Sergeant Major of the Army, Daniel A. Daly. Ladies and gentlemen, please stand for the arrival of the official party and remain standing for the singing of our national anthem by Staff Sergeant Matthew Richardson and the invocation delivered by Chaplain Thomas Soljim. Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light, what so proudly in prayer. I lift up my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Loving God, as you watch over us, we express our thanks for the sentinels in uniform who protect and defend our freedoms and way of life at home and abroad. Today, we specifically give thanks for Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins, a sentinel now enshrined in our Nathan's Pantheon of Heroes whose honor and courage shone brightly in his final sacrifice for life and freedom. A warrior of determination and commitment, his selfless actions reveal a character molded in shape by faith, his family, his friends, a disciplined life, and a selfless devotion to duty. As we look to you, enable us all to serve with the same determination as our army continues to lift high the lamp of liberty in the dark corners of the world. I pray these things in your holy, mighty, and majestic name, Lord. Amen. Please be seated. Ladies and gentlemen, General McConville. Well, good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for joining us this morning as we pay tribute to a true American hero, Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins. I'd like to welcome our acting Deputy Secretary of Defense, Mr. Norquist, our Secretary Dr. Esper, Vice Chairman, General Selver, Sergeant Major of the Army, and Mrs. Daly. Thank you all for being here. It makes it very, very special, but I really want to offer a special welcome this morning to Travis's family. Trevor's son is here, did a great job at the White House yesterday, wonderful job, and his parents, Jack and Elaine. Jack is an Army veteran and also a Vietnam veteran, so sir, thank you for your service. You set a great example for your son. I also want to welcome Travis's extended family and friends as well as the Army family that's here today as we go forward. With the presentation of the Medal of Honor yesterday at the White House, Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins joins a small paternity of servicemen who have distinguished themselves through their uncommon valor, extraordinary courage, and conspicuous gallantry beyond the call of duty in under extraordinary circumstances. We are honored to have one other Medal of Honor recipient with us today. That's General Foley. Sir, can you stand, please stand so we can recognize your service? Thank you, sir. And as we honor Travis's heroic actions, we can take some measure of comfort in knowing that in giving his life, Travis saved the lives of three soldiers who were with him that day, and I'd like to recognize Michael Kistel, Travis Rabashar, and San Ayo. Could you please stand up if you're here today? Give a hand and I'd also like the rest of the team that was here please stand up if you could. I know a few of the other soldiers that were here on that day, could you stand up too? Come on, stand up. All right, give them a hand too. Great, great day for you all, so really appreciate you all being here. Thank you for your incredible service. Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins was the ideal soldier, exactly the type of person every infantry commander wants in their formation. He was born in Great Falls, Montana, and Travis moved with his parents, Jack and Elaine, to Bozeman when he was a young boy. Now, Bozeman is a rural place, and it's a long distance from any major city. It's a place full of wide-open spaces and outdoor activities. Growing up in Bozeman, before he ever joined the army, Travis was an outdoorsman. Not only did he love to hunt, fish, nobile, and go camping, but he also could use a compass and he felt very comfortable wandering around the woods. When he wasn't hunting and fishing, Travis liked to play army with his sister Jennifer. And here's the thing, have you ever noticed that kids play army? They never played Navy, and they never play Air Force. I don't know, just saying. And Travis's leadership skills were apparent even at that young age. So when they played army, Travis was always a general and his sister Jennifer was always the private. Travis joined the army in November 2000 and immediately found his niche. He was able to put his leadership and outdoor skills to good use. He deployed with the 101st Airborne Division, the division that I'm very fond of, and he fought in the initial invasion of Iraq. He left the army after the first deployment, went off to school, but then he decided he needed to come back. So he re-enlisted and was signed to the 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment of the 2nd Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division. And we have the Commander and Sergeant Major here today of the 10th Mountain and we have General Oates and Barbara Oates who were commanded during that time, so it's great to have you here. I'll put a hand for them. Iraq in 2007 was an incredibly dangerous and volatile place. The surge had just begun. Sectarian divisions fueled unprecedented levels of violence throughout the country, improvised explosive devices were at their peak, and Travis was on his second tour in Iraq as a squad leader. His squad was conducting a rut week security mission near what has been previously been farmland, but now was one of Al-Qaeda's strongholds. In a June 1st, 2007, a Friday, we found Travis's squad on a dusty dirt road that was frickly beset with IEDs. When soldiers saw two suspected insurgents trying to cross the route they were tasked to secure, they yelled at the individuals. The individuals began to act erratically, acknowledging the soldiers' commands, but also looking as they might try to escape. Travis immediately took charge of the situation. He moved his vehicle to the individual's location and dismounted. He intended to stop and search the individuals, but when he reached them one of the insurgents began to resist and fight Travis. Today's war is a sometimes thought to be cold, distance fights where the extended ranges or our rifles, our artillery, and our unmanned aerial systems make warfare detached and impersonal, but on that day it wasn't. And what Travis experienced is what war is, a gritty personal experience fought not from miles away, but from the squad level and at the individual level. Realizing that the individual he detained had explosives hidden underneath his clothes, Travis did not retreat, and he did not call for help. Recognizing the danger that he and his men were in, Travis bravely engaged in hand-to-hand combat, trying with all his strength to keep the insurgent from reaching the detonator to his suicide vests. But as the hand-to-hand combat continued, the insurgent was able to reach the suicide vests under his clothing, Travis threw him in the ground and because of his actions he saved the lives of the three soldiers who were with him. That self-sacrifice and action is what we call uncommon valor. Travis thought only of the lives of his men. He did what he knew he had to be done and he sacrificed himself, his dreams, his goals, his aspirations, and his future so others could fulfill theirs. His actions and his his leadership saved lives. You don't think anyone could better summarize Travis' heroic story better than Travis' mother, Elaine. She said, Travis loved the army. He loved being with his troops and he did the very best he could. He did the very best he could. We are all humbled and inspired by his actions and his legacy. Thank you for joining us this morning and please help me welcome the Secretary of the Army, Dr. Esper. Well thank you, General Conville, for those for those fantastic remarks. First let me welcome all the distinguished guests that are here today who have joined us for this long overdue recognition and a special welcome of course to the parents of Staff Sergeant Atkins, Jack and Elaine. It's it's been a pleasure getting to know you these past couple couple days and to really having a really chance to share some stories with you this morning about Travis' youth and maybe we'll talk a little bit about that. As well as Travis' son, all of whom, Trevor, who've traveled from Montana, thank you both for being here. It was really great to be with you all yesterday at the White House Ceremony. Trevor, you did a great job on the spot and really again to speak with you all about about Travis' life. Trevor, we are honored to have you in attendance today to represent your father. The stories you've told your remarks yesterday, I just I'm sure it's a moment of both pride and sadness for you, but your remarks about being around the soldiers that he served with and the stories they told made you feel so much more closer to them and to your father and so thank you for sharing that with all of us and thank you for sharing your father with our country. I also want to welcome Travis' other family members and friends who are in attendance as well as many of his battle buddies who fought alongside Travis. So a shout out to the 10th Mountain, Climb the Glory. We're welcome here today to pay tribute to Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins whose actions on June 1st 2007 are fully deserving of the nation's highest and most most prestigious military decoration awarded for acts of valor. His heroic actions that they as just recounted by General McConville leave no doubt that Staff Sergeant Atkins acted with one purpose during those trying moments to save the lives of his soldiers. Today Travis joins a select group who have demonstrated the willingness to go beyond the call of duty when the nation needed them most and we have two of them serving here today. Thank you sir as well. Today we are proud and humbled to have had a non-commissioned officer of his stature among our ranks. Travis was the type of person who is destined to be a soldier a native of Montana much of Travis' youth was spent in the outdoors hunting and fishing and camping and skiing and sometimes as Jack told us his son was prone to steal snowmobiles and take them out on his own. Travis was also an expert shot with a rifle and a natural land navigation and in many ways a natural soldier in his cleverness. Elaine shared with us a short while ago that I think you told us when he was in first grade your expectation was that he would before he went to school each day he would make his bed and that worked well for a few days and she was trying to figure out why was he making his bed. Apparently it took you about a week to figure out that he was actually not getting inside his bed but pulling out a sleeping bag and sleeping on top of his bed every day and throwing it back in the closet which is a typical soldier thing for those of us who've had that experience but he figured that out at age six but that's a wonderful story that tells you a lot about the type of person and Travis was. Oftentimes when Travis and Jack would go hunting Travis was known to split off at first day like to explore the vast Montana landscape only only to rejoin his father later in the day after successfully harvest him his game. Travis was an expert shot and something that Trevor shared with us that he's inherited as well and so again a natural soldier. Although his parents never pushed him to join his service Travis was drawn to the military. On November 9th 2000 Travis enlisted in the army as an infantryman and deployed to Iraq with 101st Airborne Division. Following the end of his first enlistment term, Travis returned to Montana and re-entered civilian life. He enrolled in college and worked part-time painting homes and pouring concrete but as his father described civilian life just didn't do it for him. He had to get back in the army. Jack an army veteran himself encouraged Travis to pursue another career within the army for he had surely done his share of time on the front lines. But Travis was insistent that the infantry was the right place for him. So in December of 2005 fully aware that he would once again be sent to fight for his country, Travis for a second time answered the call to serve. Within months of re-enlisting in the army Staff Sergeant Atkins was back in Iraq. Now serving as a squad leader Travis was known as a quiet professional who had the utmost concern for those serving under his charge. In fact it's no surprise as Jack related to us on many of their trips together. His father would talk to him about what it meant to command and lead soldiers and how you take care of your soldiers and protect them. This is what Travis lived. As one of Travis's former company commanders once remarked, these are some men who just know they need to be wearing stripes down in the dirt with the guys and he was one of them. Having already survived two roadside bombs Travis grew accustomed to the emerging insurgent tactics and his soldiers looked to him for guidance especially when the situation grew tense. A natural leader Travis was quick to act under pressure and his soldiers completely trusting his abilities were as quick to respond to Travis's direction. But on June 1st 2007 there would be no time for orders. When Travis instinctively sensed that his patrol was within the kill zone of a suicide attack he acted without hesitation. A common man would have succumbed to the very human instinct to seek cover but driven by a natural reflex of self-preservation even the bravest of us all would have likely tried to get away. But given the proximity of the bomber to his men they would have surely this would have surely resulted in the lives loss of several lives and as one of his squadmates told me yesterday many many more might have been lost if not for his action. So instead Travis took the only action that would save the lives of his soldiers and others and in doing so guaranteed that his own life would be lost would be sacrificed to a greater cause. Through this act of incredible courage and heroism Travis Akin's legacy will live on forever. In 2013 the Akin's functional fitness facility was dedicated at Fort Drum, New York in a ceremony attended by Jack and Elaine a fitting tribute as Travis loved physical training. At the headquarters of Travis's former unit the 2nd Battalion 14th Infantry Regiment a memorial to Staff Sergeant Akin's is located in the main entrance serving as inspiration for those soldiers who follow in his footsteps and right now members of that battalion are once again forward deployed defending our great nation. Travis's courage sacrifice and commitment to a cause greater than himself remain I'm sure at the forefront of their minds as they perform their duties today. And today in perhaps the most fitting tribute we will induct Travis into the Hall of Heroes where he joins a group of seemingly ordinary men who performed extraordinarily and extraordinary acts of courage under the most difficult of conditions a group of men who rose to the occasion during the most trying of times. Today Travis takes his rightful place amongst that elite group whose names adore the walls of that sacred hall. It's a privilege for me to be part of this ceremony as we honor the bravery of this incredible hero Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins exemplifies all that is great about our army and our nation his commitment to his country and to his brothers in arms serves as a lasting example that will inspire soldiers for generations to come. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen Mr. Norquist. Thank you Secretary Esper distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen friends and family welcome and thank you for being here today to welcome Staff Sergeant Travis Atkins to his rightful place in the Hall of Heroes. I also want to offer a special welcome to the many soldiers that served with Travis along with his father Jack an army veteran his mother Elaine and his son Trevor who I was lucky enough to spend some time with this morning. It is an honor to be with you all today thank you for your service and the sacrifices you have made for our nation. Today is special because today we reflect on the true meaning of courage service and sacrificial selflessness and honor a rare person who embodied them. There are many valourous stories of combat but the Medal of Honor is special. It is awarded only to the bravest among us. Staff Sergeant Atkins is one of them. We may use the term hero all the time but there are heroes among the heroes and they are very rare. Since the Medal of Honor's creation in 1861 of the tens of millions who have served in the U.S. military less than 3,600 medals have been awarded each after painstaking deliberation and consideration. These are people who when presented with the option chose others over themselves. This award is about offering these special souls our reverence as a nation and as a military and ensuring that the best among us their bravery their sacrifice and their selflessness are never forgotten. Where does that courage and selflessness come from we often ask ourselves. It comes from a commitment to others and to the mission. For Travis a curious self-directed adventurous kid who loved everything from hunting and fishing to heavy metal, Schubert and Johnny Cash, civilian life just didn't do it for him according to his father. He was looking for more and the military is where he found it. A world he loved so much that he even called basic training the best thing he had ever done. Hardcore. Through service Travis found a calling a sense of purpose and a community that he was willing to give the ultimate sacrifice to defend. As his fellow soldiers have described him he was a strong decisive leader who instinctively knew when to act and the right way to do it. He was a leader with enormous courage and a strong sense of loyalty to his team. As they tell it it was his emotional stamina and abiding belief that they would be able to confront whatever challenge they would encounter that gave others the confidence they needed to accomplish the mission. He loved his soldiers and they loved him. As his father said superior officers had talked to him about going from gold green to gold and he considered it but he really liked being out there in the field with his men and he didn't want to give that up. As his parents were counted Travis thought a lot about those in his charge coaching them helping them grow and teaching them how to protect themselves and complete the mission. He also inspired them to be better leaders and better people. As Roberto Travis's legacy has solidified who I have become and what I do and give to others. His willingness to sacrifice his life to protect those around him is fundamentally why we are all here to protect each other and to protect our nation. We may spend a lot of time talking about weapon systems technologies and doctrine but our most important asset is the individual soldier sailor airman and marine because when the rubber meets the road at the tip of the spear it all comes down to the individual men and women their bravery courage professionalism sense of duty and selflessness all of which were so remarkably exhibited by this great american. War has always been a human endeavor and it is people like Travis that give us faith in our future. His actions resonate across time and place inspiring us and fortifying our trust in ourselves in our humanity in our military and in our nation. Our nation is forever indebted to him and this medal reflects the american people's understanding of a certain paradox. We only become truly great when we make ourselves the servants of others. Travis was a truly great man. Jack, Elaine and Trevor your son and father is the very definition of servant and hero. This nation is proud to call him one of our own. Thank you. Secretary Esper, General McConville, Sergeant Major of the Army Daily, Mr. Trevor Oliver son of Staff Sergeant Atkins and Mr. and Mrs. John Atkins parents of Staff Sergeant Atkins will now join Mr. Norquist on stage for the induction ceremony. Ladies and gentlemen please remain seated during the presentations. The President of the United States of America authorized by active congress March 3rd 1863 as awarded in the name of congress the Medal of Honor to Staff Sergeant Travis W. Atkins United States Army for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Staff Sergeant Travis W. Atkins distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on 1 June 2007 while serving in the position of squad leader with Company D, 2D Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 2D Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom while manning a static observation post in the town of Abu Samak, Iraq Staff Sergeant Atkins was notified that four suspicious individuals walking in two pairs were crossing an intersection not far from his position. Staff Sergeant Atkins immediately moved his squad to interdict the individuals. One of the individuals began behaving erratically prompting Staff Sergeant Atkins to disembark from his patrol vehicle and approach to conduct a search. Both individuals responded belligerently towards Staff Sergeant Atkins who then engaged the individual he had intended to search in hand to hand combat. Staff Sergeant Atkins tried to wrestle the insurgents arms behind his back. When he noticed the insurgent was reaching for something under his clothes Staff Sergeant Atkins immediately wrapped him in a bear hug and threw him to the ground away from his fellow soldiers. Staff Sergeant Atkins maintained his hold on the insurgent placing his body on top of him further sheltering his patrol. With Staff Sergeant Atkins on top of him the insurgent detonated a bomb strapped to his body killing Staff Sergeant Atkins. Staff Sergeant Atkins acted with complete disregard for his own safety. In this critical and selfless act of valor Staff Sergeant Atkins saved the lives of the three other soldiers who were with him and gallantly gave his life for his country. Staff Sergeant Atkins' undaunted courage, warrior spirit and steadfast devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the 2D Brigade Combat Team and the United States Army. At this time the Medal of Honor flag will be presented. On 23 October 2002 Public Law 107-248 Section 8143 established the Medal of Honor flag to recognize service members who have distinguished themselves by gallantly in action above and beyond the call of duty. The Medal of Honor flag commemorates the sacrifice and bloodshed for our freedoms and gives emphasis to the Medal of Honor being the highest award for valor by an individual serving in the armed forces of the United States. The light blue color with gold fringe bearing 13 white stars are adapted from the Medal of Honor ribbon. The Medal of Honor plaque will now be unveiled inducting Staff Sergeant Atkins into the Hall of Heroes. Thank you, Mr. Norquist, Secretary Esper, General McConville, Sergeant Major Daley and Mrs. Atkins. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Trevor Oliver, accompanied by his grandfather, Mr. Jack Atkins. Good morning and thank you to everyone who has spoken before me today, everyone down here in front. I can't thank you enough for making it easier on me. And General McConville, especially, thank you very much. You know, Secretary Esper, again, meeting you today was a tremendous honor and I'm very happy I got to have a conversation with you as well as Norquist as well. I appreciate our conversation we had as well. It was very sweet. Thank you to all of my father's fellow soldiers, anyone who even knew of him to an extent. Your kind words over this week and over the entire time since you've known me, they've made it very, very easy on me and made it very easy for me to get over this and make me feel at home and make me feel like a family with you guys. You mean the world to me and I hope you guys know that. Let's see. I didn't have a lot of time to spend with my dad. It was a shorter time but it was a very, very valuable time. He taught me just about everything that he could about the outdoors, whether it be hunting, fishing. He was a very outdoorsy guy and he made sure I took that with me. Most of my time with him were during our visits in Montana. I would go out there about twice a year during the summer and during the winter and we would get up to all sorts of trouble whether it was the winter snowmobiling or going out and shooting go for something like that. We loved spending time out in the wilderness and just with each other. It was an incredible time with him. We love shooting ranges. We love target practice. I still wouldn't say today I'm a better shot than him. He was an incredible marksman and he taught me everything I know about rifles and safety and he was an incredible, incredible inspiration when it came to that. Like I said during our winter we would snowmobile and go out in the mountains to places that no one else sees with the places we would go. We would climb things that we were not supposed to be climbing on our snowmobiles and going places that a lot of people would not go and he was a total adrenaline junkie when it came to the snowmobile. He loved going way too fast on that thing. The snowmobile I have is as well. It was his before he passed away. I can't tell you how long he spent on that thing but he spent way too much time making that thing go faster than it was supposed to. So yeah as a little kid if I would get on that thing and put it straight down it would flip you straight back so it's not a toy. Those were the most precious memories I have of him. The winter and the snowmobile memories those were the ones that I remember the most out of everything. It's funny how those memories stick. We left him in a snow bank. He was way too far up. We couldn't get to him so we left him out there and he dug himself up and he came to the Meadow Crick Lodge which is a restaurant you can only get to buy snowmobiling and he came in black, blue and purple and shaken and all he could muster up to say was coffee. That's the strength I always remember. He was always able to do it himself and he was a very independent and strong person and that's something I try to take with me every day and I hope I emulate a little bit of him out here today because that's what I'm trying. Yeah, he was he was an absolute funny, sweet, amazing guy. He was he was hard. He was a very tough, tough man but the funniest, the sweetest and loving, passionate person out there. He can make the whole room laugh just by walking in and smiling. That's the kind of person he was. He was he was an absolute, absolute loving caring man and Travis took pride in being an amazing father and in being an amazing soldier. Being a soldier was his life and he was the blueprint of an amazing soldier and I thank him for that and I I'm eternally thankful for him. Thank you everybody. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Oliver and Mr. Atkins. Ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing and join in the singing of the Army Song. The words to the Army Song can be found in your program. March along, sing our song. The nation's might and the army goes rolling. Ladies and gentlemen, please pause for a moment at your seats to allow the official party and Staff Sergeant Atkins family to exit the auditorium.