Paul Rieckhoff Paul Rieckhoff is a writer , social entrepreneur , advocate , activist and veteran of the United States Army and the Iraq War . He is the Founder and Executive Director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America ( IAVA ) . He served as an Army First Lieutenant and infantry rifle platoon leader in Iraq from 2003 through 2004 . Rieckhoff was released from active duty in March 2004 and the National Guard in 2011 . Education . Rieckhoff attended public High School in New York and graduated from Amherst College in 1998 with a BA in Political Science . Military service . Rieckhoff enlisted in the U . S . Army Reserves on September 15 , 1998 and completed Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort McClellan , Alabama . He then served in the U . S . Army Reserves , as a Specialist with the 812th Military Police Company . While working on Wall Street in 1999 , Rieckhoff transferred to the New York Army National Guard . He graduated from Officer Candidate School in June 2001 and was named a Distinguished Military Graduate . Rieckhoff selected infantry as his branch and joined A Company , 1 / 105th INF ( Light ) . Rieckhoff left Wall Street on September 7 , 2001 with plans to travel and complete additional military schooling . On the morning of September 11 , Rieckhoff was at his apartment in Manhattan when the first plane hit the World Trade Center . He participated in the rescue efforts at ground zero . His unit was formally activated for rescue and security operations later that evening . In 2002 , Rieckhoff volunteered for the invasion of Iraq . In January of that year , he was on a plane to join the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart , Georgia . Rieckhoff was then assigned as a Platoon Leader In the 3 / 124th INF ( Air Assault ) FLNG . The unit was attached to 1st Brigade , 3rd Infantry Division and spent almost a year conducting combat operations in Baghdad , Iraq . Third Platoon conducted over 1 , 000 dismounted and mounted combat patrols . All thirty - eight of the men in Rieckhoff ' s platoon returned home alive . Rieckhoff was awarded a United States Army Commendation Medal for his service in Iraq . Bronze Star and Special Forces patch controversy . On July 13 , 2012 , three days after Rieckhoff publicly advocated for a revised Stolen Valor Act , the military blog " This Ain ' t Hell " uncovered a 2004 " Amherst Magazine " interview of Rieckhoff which included a photograph of him in uniform wearing a Bronze Star Medal and a United States Army Special Forces unit patch . According to " Stars and Stripes " , in response to the allegation that he wore a medal he had not been awarded , Rieckhoff " defended the medal as a paperwork mistake " and explained that he " bought his Bronze Star after being told he had earned the medal , but hasn ' t worn it since that interview . " An earlier article in the " Army Times " states that " In 2004 , his command told him he would be awarded the medal for meritorious service . When he left the Army that year , the medal was clearly listed on his DD 214 discharge form . " In the same article , Rieckhoff noted " that he no longer wears the award or claims publicly to have earned it . " Concerning the allegation that Rieckhoff had worn a Special Forces unit patch without ever having served in a Special Forces unit , " Stars and Stripes " noted that Rieckhoff " blames the Special Forces patch on bad timing and enthusiasm . " The article states that " [ h ] e sewed on the patch days after receiving an assignment to the unit , but pulled it off a few weeks later when that assignment changed . " Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America . After returning home from Iraq in 2004 , Rieckhoff founded Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America ( IAVA ) , a nonpartisan organization for new veterans . Public Life . Rieckhoff is a nationally - recognized and known authority on the new veteran community and policy . He regularly testifies before Congress on issues facing the veterans ' community and writes regularly for national websites and publications . In August 2011 , Rieckhoff and four other IAVA Member Veterans appeared on the cover of Time $ 2agazine for a feature about Iraq and Afghanistan veterans being leaders of the New Greatest Generation . Rieckhoff has appeared on many television and radio programs including “ Meet the Press ” , The Charlie Rose Show , NBC Nightly News , World News With Charles Gibson , The Early Show , Tavis Smiley , The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer , Anderson Cooper 360° , The Rachel Maddow Show , Real Time with Bill Maher , The Colbert Report and The Henry Rollins Show . He has also written articles and opinion columns for The New York Times , Associated Press , Wall Street Journal , USA Today , Los Angeles Times , Washington Post , Newsweek , The Huffington Post , Military . com and many more publications . Books . Rieckhoff wrote a book describing his experiences in Iraq and activism afterwards entitled " Chasing Ghosts " ( 2006 ) . Awards and affiliations . Rieckhoff was inducted into the Global Ashoka Fellowship in 2010 as recognition of his innovation and entrepreneurship on behalf of new veterans . Rieckhoff is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations . Named # 37 of GQ ’ s " 50 Most Powerful People in D . C . ] " in 2009 , Rieckhoff has been honored with the Common Ground “ Celebrating Home Award ” and the Generation Engage “ Lewis Cullman Civic Engagement Award ” for his leadership in the service community . In 2004 , he was also honored by Esquire magazine as one of “ America ’ s Best and Brightest . ”