Tuesday, Jul. 15, 2008

Olathe man thanked for service in Iraq

Chris Knoll, 21 was given a hero’s welcome Saturday in Olathe when members of the Patriot Guard paraded around his neighborhood on motorcycles to thank him for his service.

This spring, Knoll and four of his squad members were awarded the Bronze Star for valor for attempting to save the life of Marine Lt. Col. William G. Hall while in Iraq.

Knoll, the squad members and Hall were riding in Fallujah when the vehicle they were in was struck by a roadside bomb.

“We all feel a bunch of different things now,” Knoll said. “We risked our lives trying to save his. We feel lucky we were alive. Even though we did more than we were supposed to, we are sad he died.”

Knoll began his Army training in June 2007. By the end of August, he was in Ramadi, Iraq. He was placed on personal security detail. His job was to protect high-ranking officers. In late March, Knoll was the driver of a vehicle that hit a pressure-plate trigger just outside of Fallujah.

“The back left tire barely hit it, and it went off,” Knoll said.

The truck suddenly filled with black smoke. Then it was on fire. The gas tank exploded. As Knoll and other passengers “flew out of the car,” Hall remained in the vehicle.

“He was wedged in, and we couldn’t move him,” Knoll said. “...I think it’s adrenaline and training. It’s just instinct. As soon as it happened, we knew we had to help.”

The 50-caliber ammunition the vehicle transporter began to fire. Knoll and four others from his squad frantically worked to remove Hall. With the help of some Marines who came upon the accident, they pulled Hall, a father of four, out of the vehicle. But the injuries Hall sustained in the explosion were too extensive for him to survive. He died the next day.

“He was sitting behind me, and I had shrapnel in my vest,” Knoll said. “I know he took the blast himself.”

Soon after the explosion, Knoll called his mother, Ruth. She remembers he called at 3:30 p.m. to warn her the Army would call to explain the incident.

“I never wanted to hear that call,” Ruth Knoll said. “I thought, ‘Oh my God what happened?’ I felt my world sinking. Any parent who has a child go to Iraq, their biggest fear is having the official truck pull in the driveway, and I didn’t want that.”

Chris Knoll was given a few days of rest after the explosion. He suffered a concussion in the vehicle.

“You’ve gotta go on,” he said. “It’s like falling off a horse. Ya gotta get back on.”

Chris Knoll returned to the United States in June and met his mother in Belton, Mo.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a more handsome face than when he got off that bus,” Ruth Knoll said. “I wanted to take off and get him that day. That’s a mom’s reaction. But I had to wait.”

When she didn’t have to wait any longer to see him, she arranged for a tribute to her son. She arranged for the Patriot Guard to ride for him. At home, small American flags line his family driveway. The fireplace is adorned with a poster she made that says, “Welcome home my son, my hero.”

“It was a way of saying thank you,” Ruth Knoll said. “I wanted it done for him. My kids are defending this country. I know things are hard in America, but we can still enjoy things here. They pay the price.”

For now, Chris Knoll is readying himself for another semester at the University of Kansas. Prior to receiving his orders in 2007, he had begun work on a finance degree.

“It’s good just being home,” Knoll said. “It’s good to get back to the things you know. It’s nice to get recognized once in a while.”

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