Medal of Honor recipient, Capt. William Swenson, returns to active duty

Only months after receiving the nation’s highest award for valor, Capt. William Swenson has left the civilian world and returned to active duty.

Capt. Swenson, who left the service in 2011, will be assigned to I Corps at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., The Army Times reported.

On Oct. 15, 2013, Capt. Swenson was awarded the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony for his bravery during a 2009 ambush in Afghanistan’s Kunar province.

With little air support, the soldier repeatedly braved enemy fire to retrieve the bodies of those killed in action. His actions on Sept. 8, 2009 helped save lives on a day when five Americans, nine Afghan troops and an interpreter perished.

“Today, I stand with the Medal of Honor,” he said during his award ceremony, The Army Times reported. “But this award was earned with a team. A team of our finest: Marines, Army, Air Force, Navy and our Afghan partners, standing side by side. And now, that team includes Gold Star families who lost their fathers, sons and husbands that day. This medal represents them. It represents us.”