October 1, 1988 – October 6, 2013
Sergeant Patrick Hawkins is described by those who served with him as the kind of man you want behind you in a firefight–a leader, friend, and warrior who made everyone around him better. He was on his fourth deployment to Afghanistan, serving as a Team Leader in 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. During a night raid in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, aimed at disrupting enemy forces, an improvised explosive device killed three of his fellow soldiers. Hawkins quickly moved to aid one of the fallen when a second explosion occurred, killing him in action. Hawkins was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, and Purple Heart. One of his soldiers said that Hawkins “never left a man behind. Never. If someone went down, he was the first to move.” That loyalty cost him his life when he stepped into danger to help another wounded Ranger—but that was who he was. Those who served with Hawkins say they try to live up to his example—to be the kind of Ranger he was: brave, selfless, and honorable: “We carry him with us, always.”