Sgt. Gregory Allen Belanger - Deerfield, MA
Posted by: neoc1
N 42° 31.712 W 072° 36.258
18T E 696760 N 4711242
A monument to Sgt. Gregory Allen Belanger is located at the southeast corner of Route 5 (Greenfield Rd.) and Wrapping Rd. in Deerfield, MA.
Waymark Code: WMVAKE
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 03/24/2017
Views: 0
A monument honoring Sgt. Gregory Allen Belanger contains a bronze attached to a boulder flanked by two stone benches and a flagpole. The plaque contains the image of Sgt. Belanger, the Bronze Star for Valor, Combat Action Badge, and the Purple Heart as well as the following inscriptions including a quote from Roman writer Publilius Syrus (85–43 BC):
SGT. Gregory Allen Belanger
KIA -AUG 27 2003
US ARMY, OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM
"Valor grown by daring, fear by holding back."
Sgt. Gregory Belanger was killed in action on Augugust 27, 2003 in Hallia, Iraq when an improvised explosive device struck a vehicle in which he was travelling. He was serving with the Headquarters Service Company, 325th Military Intelligence Battalion out of Ayer, MA, which was attached to the 94th Regional Readiness Command.
He grew up in Deerfield, MA and attended Johnson and Wales University in Rhode Island where he obtained a a degree in culinary arts in 2001 before entering the Army as a cook. He enlisted in the Army Reserve and was called up to active duty shortly after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. He was the first soldier from Rhode Island to be killed during Iraqi Freedom.