Bronze Star

Lt. Col. Kenneth Kleid, acting commander of the Oklahoma Air National Guard's 146th Air Support Operations Squadron, presents the Bronze Star Medal to 2nd Lt. Christopher Schutte of Las Vegas, Nev., an air liaison officer for the 146th ASOS, at Officer Training School March 1. Schutte, who earned his commission as a second lieutenant in the Oklahoma Air National Guard from the Academy of Military Science March 2 , is the first OTS student to receive a Bronze Star Medal during his commissioning training. Schutte earned the medal for actions he took while serving as the enlisted battalion air liaison officer and lead joint terminal attack controller in support of the 1st Battalion, 179th Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. He and his team engaged in ground combat in the Laghman and Nuristan Provinces, Regional Command-East, Afghanistan, during Operation Enduring Freedom from July 13 to Dec. 12, 2011. (Air Force photo/Melanie Rodgers Cox)