Lieutenant Colonel Bennett Walsh is one of seven children of Kateri and Dan Walsh of Springfield, Mass. He served three tours in Iraq and was under fire in Somalia commanding the same platoon that his father commanded in Vietnam: the 2nd Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, First Marines. He returned from Afghanistan on September 25th, where he was the Current Operations Officer for the First Marine Division. Col. Walsh, who is married to Shannon and the father of Molly, Bennett, Jr., Siobhan and Norah, represents the many Americans of Irish descent who are serving in our military. We wish them Godspeed and a safe return home.

Since March 13th, Walsh has been activated to Japan, where, as a part of Operation Tomodachi, he is aiding in the evacuation of American citizens and helping the Japanese in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami. As he has told Irish America before, he said “I could not do any of this without the love and dedication of my wife Shannon and the kids. They are the hidden heroes of the US Military.”