Medley, Preston Ray
Male
Verified U.S. Army Sergeant Preston Ray Medley, 23, of Baker, Florida, was killed in Qazi Bandeh, Afghanistan, on October 14, 2008.
Their Story
Preston Ray Medley was a 23-year-old sergeant from Baker, Florida, serving with Company D, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team based at Fort Hood, Texas. He was deployed to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
According to U.S. Department of Defense casualty reports, Sergeant Medley died on October 14, 2008, in Qazi Bandeh, Afghanistan, from wounds sustained during a hostile incident. The area was part of Paktika Province, a region along the Pakistan border where insurgent activity was frequent.
Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, began in October 2001 following the September 11 attacks. By 2008, the conflict was marked by a significant increase in U.S. troop levels and combat operations against Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces.
Medley's death was reported by the Department of Defense and local Florida media. He was one of at least 155 American service members killed in Afghanistan in 2008, a year that saw a sharp rise in combat fatalities.
Sergeant Medley is listed on the Afghanistan War Memorial and remembered on online veterans' memorials. His unit, the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry, continued operations in Afghanistan for several more years.
Explore Further
Sgt. Medley was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.
