WATERLOO - An employee of the John Deere Engine Works and an assistant wrestling coach at East High School now serving with the Iowa Army National Guard in Iraq has been decorated for his actions in a firefight in July.

Iowa Army National Guard Sgt. Ryan Sallis, serving with the Iowa Army National Guard 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, has been awarded the Army Commendation Medal with valor for his actions in an engagement in Baghdad July 2-3.

Sallis, a truck commander with the 1/133rd, was part of a convoy in Baghdad that was attacked with heavy small arms fire and rocket propelled grenades, according to information on the Web site for the National Guard's 34th "Red Bull" Division, of which the 1/133rd is a part.

"Sgt, Sallis directed his gunner to return fire," but he could not reach his commander, according to 34th Division information. Sallis "took the initiative to call for close air support," directing Apache attack helicopters on the enemy forces. He then directed an Army "quick reaction force" to the convoy's location.

"His persistence under pressure allowed him to gain communications with the rest of the convoy," which "allowed him to consolidate and reorganize the unit during the battle," the account of Sallis' actions on the 34th Division Web site says.

The account continues, "His actions provided timely close air support that destroyed a large enemy force and allowed his convoy to continue to their mission, ultimately saving the lives of his fellow service members and millions of dollars in U.S. Army equipment,"

Sallis' father, Larry Sallis, said he was only recently made aware of his son's achievements. He said his son, on calls from Iraq, doesn't talk about soldiering with him so as not to worry the family.

"All we talk about is wrestling," Larry Sallis said. "The thing with Ryan is, this is his country and he'll do anything to protect his country, and he'll do anything for those guys. When I think of him, I just break down. It's tough."

Ryan Sallis, a 2001 graduate of East, was a recipient of the school's Clyde Artus MVP Award for athletic achievement. As a wrestler, Sallis posted more than 100 varsity wins for the Trojans, earning team MVP honors and winning a Mississippi Valley Conference title as a senior. At the state-meet level, Sallis qualified twice and finished fifth as a senior.

He also participated in football, cross country and tennis. He attended Wartburg College, having received a Slife Scholarship for the Waverly school.

Sallis participated in the 1/133rd's peacekeeping mission deployment to the Sinai Peninsula in 2003 and has worked at Deere since that deployment was concluded, according to his father.

Sallis and his wife, Heather, have a 3-year-old son.

The 1/133rd is nicknamed the "Ironman Battalion" for its consecutive days in combat in World War II. About 600 soldiers in the battalion were called up for the current deployment in October 2005 and have been in Iraq since March 2006 after receiving training in Mississippi. Two soldiers in the unit have been killed in combat and 25 wounded, mainly by roadside bombs.

The unit is anticipated to return home in August.

Contact Pat Kinney at (319) 291-1484 or pat.kinney@wcfcourier.com.