Soldier Honored: Shawn A. Muhr

Army Specialist Shawn A. Muhr, 26, of Coon Rapids, Iowa was assigned to the 264th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 82nd Sustainment Brigade, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.  SPC Muhr served during Operation Enduring Freedom. On January 29, 2011, in Helmand province, Afghanistan, enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.

SPC Muhr had been in the Army for six years and had previously served in South Korea and Iraq. He deployed to Afghanistan in October 2010.  SPC Muhr's awards and decorations include the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good/Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal-Campaign Star, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon and the Overseas Service Ribbon. SPC Muhr was awarded the following awards posthumously: the Purple Heart, Bronze Star Medal and the Combat Action Badge.

Muhr was a 2003 graduate of Coon Rapids-Bayard High School, where he wrestled and played football. He placed sixth in his weight class in the 2003 state wrestling tournament, and he held a school record for pins.  “He had found his niche in the military,” said Bill Orlano, a guidance counselor at Coon Rapids-Bayard High School. “He was really happy about being in the military and serving his country. He really blossomed there.”  His fellow soldiers called him “Ox,” because of how hard he worked and his ability to lift heavy equipment, but he was also known as an easygoing person who enjoyed a good laugh.  SPC Muhr’s father, David Muhr, said “he was about as ornery, happy, joking and dry-humored as they ever get.”

SPC Muhr’s son is a Folds of Honor Scholarship recipient.