Medfield Native Awarded Bronze Star Medal for Service in Marine Corps

Three years after graduating from , Todd M. Caruso joined the United States Marine Corps in 1989 through the Platoon Leaders Course entry program.

This past February, 25 years after receiving his diploma at MHS, Lieutenant Colonel Caruso was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for “meritorious service” while serving as the commanding officer of the VMAQ-2 squadron deployed to Afghanistan in 2010. The Bronze Star Medal is the ninth highest military award and fourth-highest U.S. Armed Forces combat award.

“I am very honored and flattered to receive the Bronze Star for my tour as VMAQ-2 Commanding Officer,” Caruso said. “It was an incredibly rewarding experience to be part of a top performing unit."

Caruso said VMAQ-2 received several unit awards for its performance in 2010.

"They were the Marine Corps Aviation Association Electronic Warfare Squadron of the Year and the Association of Old Crows Marine EW squadron of the year," Caruso said. "They also received two top level awards for safety, one from the Secretary of Defense and one from the Secretary of the Navy.”

Caruso gave credit to his fellow VMAQ-2 squadron Marines for being personally recognized with the Bronze Star.

“No unit performs that well because of one person, I am honored and fortunate to have served with Marines of such high caliber,” Caruso said. “Over and over again, they consistently faced challenges head on, overcame adversity and accomplished the mission safely, effectively and efficiently each and every time, I am very proud to have been a part of that.”

Lt. Col. Caruso assumed command of VMAQ-2 on Nov. 19, 2009 and deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM from May to November 2010.

It was VMAQ-2 squadron’s efforts and outstanding performance during that time in Afghanistan that warranted the unit awards and Caruso’s Bronze Star.

One event in particular during VMAQ-2’s deployment to Afghanistan best illustrated what the squadron was all about.

On May 19, 2010, VMAQ-2 found itself engaged in a gunfight with Taliban insurgents at Camp McCool, Afghanistan, according to a June 16, 2010 article in the Marine Corps Times, “Aviation Marines engage Taliban in ground fight.”

Caruso told staff writer Amy McCullough “you’d never expect VMAQ-2 to be engaged in close combat with the enemy, but the Marines performed amazingly well.”

To read MCullough’s article in its entirety, which details the ground fight Caruso’s VMAQ-2 squadron encountered on May 19, 2010, click here.

Six days after Caruso’s unit fought off the Taliban insurgents, detailing the events that took place on May 19 and to assure the unit was safe. Two of the squadron’s Marines were wounded by “enemy grenades” during the ground fight but were in “stable condition” at the time of Caruso’s letter.

Caruso’s service from April 28 to Oct. 26, 2010 was deemed “meritorious” and he was presented with the Bronze Star on Feb. 14, 2011.

The following is a citation from the letter Caruso received with his Bronze Star from T.D. Waldhauser, Lieutenant General U.S. Marine Corps and Commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command:

“Lieutenant Colonel Caruso's leadership and ability to anticipate the requirements of combat operations coupled with his tactical expertise and dynamic leadership were directly responsible for the squadron's successful turnover and combat readiness upon arrival in Afghanistan and subsequent success during a challenging combat deployment. Lieutenant Colonel Caruso's leadership resulted in the execution of more than 670 sorties and 2,500 mishap-free flight hours in direct support of Marines and ,Soldiers on the ground. Under Lieutenant Colonel Caruso's leadership, the squadron was prepared and ready to repel a surprise assault by insurgent forces on Camp McCool in the early morning hours of 19 May 2010. Lieutenant Colonel Caruso's distinctive contributions, unrelenting perseverance, and steadfast devotion to duty reflected great credit upon him and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service."

Upon returning to the United States, Lt. Col. Caruso continued to serve as commanding officer of VMAQ-2 until this past August, when he relinquished command to Lt. Col. Adam M. Musoff on Aug. 12 at the Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, N.C.

“It was an amazing, fantastic experience,” Caruso told Cpl. Samuel A. Nasso of MCAS Cherry Point. “We’ve endured quite a lot of unique experiences and the Marines have been nothing short of excellent and successful when it comes to mission accomplishment.”

Caruso is presently the Executive Officer of Marine Wing Support Group 27 in Cherry Point, N.C.

The Medfield native and 22-year veteran of the Marine Corps currently resides in New Bern, N.C. with his wife, Kristina and two children, Sam, 10 and Olivia, 12.

“New Bern is a small town near Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C., which is where I am stationed,” Caruso said. “The Marine Corps has four VMAQ (Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadrons) of Prowlers. Also aboard MCAS Cherry Point are Harriers, C-130's, helo's and other support aircraft.”

Caruso travels with his family back to Medfield “approximately twice a year” to see his parents, Roger and Claudette Caruso, who still live in town.

“I returned home from deployment in November 2010 and I have been back to Medfield for a couple of visits,” Caruso said. “Once as a guest speaker for the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation [and] another time, I flew an EA6B into Hanscom Air Force Base on a training mission and was able to visit my parents during my overnight stay.”

Caruso said he and his family drove up from North Carolina to spend Thanksgiving in Medfield with his parents last week.

Timeline of Caruso’s Military Career

• 1986 – Graduates from Medfield High School
• 1989 – Joins the United States Marine Corps through the Platoon Leaders Course entry program
• 1990 – Graduates from Northeastern University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering; Commissioned as Second Lieutenant aboard the USS Constitution
• 1992 – Graduated from the Basic School in Quantico, Virg.
• 1994 – Attended Naval Flight Training in Pensacola, Fla. and promoted to First Lieutenant; Earned his wings as Naval Flight Officer and completed aviation training as an Electronic Countermeasures Officer (ECMO) in the EA-6B Prowler
• 1995 - First operational assignment was to 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing; Assigned to Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron Two (VMAQ-2) from December 1995-June 1999 and deployed three times to Aviano Airbase, Italy in support of Operations DECISIVE ENDEAVOR, NOBEL ANVIL and ALLIED FORCE
• 1996 - Promoted to Captain in July; Assigned to VMAQ-2 and served as the unit’s Classified Material Custodian, Future Operations Officer and Electronic Warfare Officer
• 2001 – Promoted to Major in June; Graduated from the Naval Postgraduate School in September with a Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering; Assigned to Naval Air Depot, Cherry Point, N.C., where he served as the Logistics, Research and Engineering Coordinator from October 2001-November 2004.
• 2004 - Transferred to Marine Aircraft Group Fourteen to serve as the Executive Officer.
• 2007 - Promoted to Lt. Col. on Sept. 1, 2007.
• 2009 - Assumed command of VMAQ-2 in November.
• 2010 - Deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM from May to November.
• 2011 – Relinquished command of VMAQ-2 in August; Reported to Marine Wing Support Group 27 (MWSG-27) for duties as Executive Officer.

Awards: Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal (15th Award with combat strike), Navy Commendation Medal and the Navy Achievement Medal.