Honoring Sal Giunta, Medal of Honor Recipient

Medal of Honor recipient Sal Giunta.

On Monday, September 12, the National Center for Veterans Studies at the University of Utah and the American Psychological Association honored Salvatore "Sal" Giunta at a reception and dinner in Washington D.C. The event included 60 invited guests representing the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, academia, the private sector and congressional staff.

Staff Sergeant Giunta, a 2010 Medal of Honor recipient, was presented an APA Presidential citation by Melba Vasquez, Ph.D., APA President. Giunta addressed the group and emphasized that his bravery was a product of both excellent military training and the opportunity to train and to serve with exemplary people.

"It was an immense privilege to present Staff Sergeant Giunta with an APA Presidential Citation for his tremendous valor and bravery, said APA President Melba Vasquez, Ph.D. "His continued advocacy for his fellow service members, veterans, and their families is consistent with the mission and values of the American Psychological Association."

Dean M. David Rudd, Medal of Honor recipient Sal Giunta, and APA President Melba Vasquez

Giunta was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony on November 16, 2010. He was the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor for service in Iraq or Afghanistan, the first living service member to be awarded the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War and the eighth service member to receive the nation’s highest military decoration for valor in Iraq and Afghanistan. Read more about Staff Sergeant Giunta.