Blake Hall

I think leadership starts with caring. I remember when I got to Mosul, and still to this day, I'm just terrified of letting my friends down. And so when you, I had 32 scouts and snipers. I'd met their wives and their parents and their kids. And if you make a wrong decision in combat, you could lose like a fourth of your platoon, just like bam, your suicide belt just gone.

I think leadership starts with caring. I remember when I got to Mosul, and still to this day, I'm just terrified of letting my friends down. And so when you, I had 32 scouts and snipers. I'd met their wives and their parents and their kids. And if you make a wrong decision in combat, you could lose like a fourth of your platoon, just like bam, your suicide belt just gone.

And so the first thing I did actually is I got to Mosul and I went up on top of a hill and I got down on my knees before God. And I said, there's a verse from Isaiah that says, no weapon formed against me shall prosper. And so I claimed that promise for my men. And God was just amazing to us over the next 15 months. But the mission set, my first firefight was in a neighborhood called Tahrir.

And so the first thing I did actually is I got to Mosul and I went up on top of a hill and I got down on my knees before God. And I said, there's a verse from Isaiah that says, no weapon formed against me shall prosper. And so I claimed that promise for my men. And God was just amazing to us over the next 15 months. But the mission set, my first firefight was in a neighborhood called Tahrir.

And as we were going through, it's in northeast Mosul. It's, I think, the same mosque that was there where Baghdadi made himself the caliph of ISIS, of the Islamic State. And we had a high-value target in the neighborhood. And as I'm getting my guys out of the trucks, we're in these Strikers. They're a 2010 vehicle. They have eight wheels. They can do about 55 miles an hour.

And as we were going through, it's in northeast Mosul. It's, I think, the same mosque that was there where Baghdadi made himself the caliph of ISIS, of the Islamic State. And we had a high-value target in the neighborhood. And as I'm getting my guys out of the trucks, we're in these Strikers. They're a 2010 vehicle. They have eight wheels. They can do about 55 miles an hour.

So it's, I think, to a layman, it's almost like a lightweight tank with a .50 caliber machine gun on top. And it's got the sound signature F-150. It's pretty quiet. And as I'm getting out, the three-letter agency attachment is like, hey, sir, he's like, be careful. This commander's marked as extremely hostile and dangerous. And I was like, what? Al-Qaeda commander is not extremely hostile.

So it's, I think, to a layman, it's almost like a lightweight tank with a .50 caliber machine gun on top. And it's got the sound signature F-150. It's pretty quiet. And as I'm getting out, the three-letter agency attachment is like, hey, sir, he's like, be careful. This commander's marked as extremely hostile and dangerous. And I was like, what? Al-Qaeda commander is not extremely hostile.

Like anything else, as soon as you get a little cocky, I was in a courtyard talking to some of the folks and then just had AK rounds like hit right over my head. The cinder block was spraying into my face because the rounds were that close to where I was at. And we were immediately into a firefight. That was my first firefight. I thought a lot about, will I be brave when it counts?

Like anything else, as soon as you get a little cocky, I was in a courtyard talking to some of the folks and then just had AK rounds like hit right over my head. The cinder block was spraying into my face because the rounds were that close to where I was at. And we were immediately into a firefight. That was my first firefight. I thought a lot about, will I be brave when it counts?

And will I care more about the team and my job than about myself? And so we basically, it was these three Al-Qaeda fighters that were shooting at us. I put my snipers up in Overwatch. I got the team aligned. I was running through an alley as we were getting shot at. Felt like my heart was literally beating out of my chest. It's really hard to describe just how loud combat is and the adrenaline.

And will I care more about the team and my job than about myself? And so we basically, it was these three Al-Qaeda fighters that were shooting at us. I put my snipers up in Overwatch. I got the team aligned. I was running through an alley as we were getting shot at. Felt like my heart was literally beating out of my chest. It's really hard to describe just how loud combat is and the adrenaline.

But we were maybe five or six minutes into the firefight before I realized that it wasn't a training exercise. There was just so much muscle memory that is drilled into you through repetition that I was like, oh, wow, this is a two-way range. And we were just deploying. So we ended up assaulting that house, taking it down. That was like the first firefight.

But we were maybe five or six minutes into the firefight before I realized that it wasn't a training exercise. There was just so much muscle memory that is drilled into you through repetition that I was like, oh, wow, this is a two-way range. And we were just deploying. So we ended up assaulting that house, taking it down. That was like the first firefight.

A couple days later, we were just driving down a street. I was with the outgoing platoon. His name was Duke Ream. He was like orienting me to Mosul. And as we're going, we saw this utility pole. You could see the line going to the asphalt. And it was clear that the asphalt had been altered. And it felt like slow motion.

A couple days later, we were just driving down a street. I was with the outgoing platoon. His name was Duke Ream. He was like orienting me to Mosul. And as we're going, we saw this utility pole. You could see the line going to the asphalt. And it was clear that the asphalt had been altered. And it felt like slow motion.

I was trying to toggle my mic to call back to the truck behind us to go break right IED. And before I could toggle it, just boom, black smoke. It was a pipe bomb. It actually breached the hull of the Stryker, this armored vehicle. Shrapnel went into the compartment where the driver was sitting in the front.

I was trying to toggle my mic to call back to the truck behind us to go break right IED. And before I could toggle it, just boom, black smoke. It was a pipe bomb. It actually breached the hull of the Stryker, this armored vehicle. Shrapnel went into the compartment where the driver was sitting in the front.

But he just miraculously, between his body armor in the back and this display that kind of wrapped around his head and neck, all the shrapnel hit that instead of him. But that was like day two and the firefight was just a few days later. And I just remember being like, that's the first week I've got. We didn't know we were going to get extended. I was like, I've got 51 more in front of me.

But he just miraculously, between his body armor in the back and this display that kind of wrapped around his head and neck, all the shrapnel hit that instead of him. But that was like day two and the firefight was just a few days later. And I just remember being like, that's the first week I've got. We didn't know we were going to get extended. I was like, I've got 51 more in front of me.