Medal recipient is a model Marine

Gen. Joseph Dunford and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta were among those who feted Wooldridge at the USO's servicemen of the year awards this month. Now 24 and a sergeant, Wooldridge distinguished himself in Afghanistan for actions that earned him the Navy Cross. In brutal hand-to-hand combat, he grabbed the machine gun of an enemy insurgent and beat him to death with it.

Wooldridge and fellow Marines in a trench taken from the Taliban. Wooldridge’s exploits are not well known outside the Marine Corps, but officers say close encounters with the enemy are not uncommon, despite the increasing use of drone-fired missiles and smart bombs.

Wooldridge scans the battlefield with a javelin missile about to engage enemy forces.

During Wooldridge's company's tour, the Taliban tried to ambush the Marines at every turn. The roughly 125 Marines were facing between 150 and 250 hardened Taliban fighters who had established a sophisticated network of bunkers and trenches laced into hills in the high ground overlooking the wadi. The area had been seeded with roadside bombs.

Wooldridge's view of Musa Qula, Afghanistan in overwatch position. TheTaliban used this area as the main route used by well-trained foreign fighters coming from Pakistan into the river valley.

Wooldridge was awarded the Navy Cross for heroic actions in repelling an enemy ambush in Musa Qaleh, Afghanistan.

Wooldridge's unit takes their first bath in six weeks during their deployment in Afghanistan.

Wooldridge currently works training Marines at Marine Corps Security Forces Training Co. in Chesapeake, Va. Here he instructs a young Marine with a shotgun.

The USO's servicemembers of the year, including Wooldridge, were celebrated in Washington on Nov. 2.