The paperwork is completed. The choice isn’t.
A Staten Island soldier’s Medal of Honor case has reached the president’s desk greater than a decade after his loss of life in Afghanistan, inserting the ultimate name within the fingers of President Donald Trump.
Employees Sgt. Michael H. Ollis, a Staten Island native assigned to the tenth Mountain Division, was killed Aug. 28, 2013, at Ahead Working Base Ghazni in Afghanistan after shielding a Polish officer from a suicide bomber. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross—the Army’s second-highest valor honor.
However his household, lawmakers and veterans have spent years pushing for an improve to the Medal of Honor. In December 2025, the Army accomplished its evaluate and formally despatched the advice to the White Home, leaving the ultimate resolution solely with the president.
“We’re cautiously optimistic,” mom Linda Ollis informed Navy.com. “We perceive how far this has come, and we simply pray it’s lastly signed.”
Navy.com reached out for remark to the White Home, the Division of Protection and U.S. Army.
A Lengthy Wait
The case has moved by Army awards boards, senior command channels and congressional places of work throughout a number of administrations as a part of a course of supporters say displays warning in revisiting valor selections somewhat than doubt about what Ollis did that day.
Early recognition centered on a posthumous Silver Star advice tied to the Aug. 28, 2013, assault at FOB Ghazni, the place he was killed defending coalition forces in the course of the suicide bombing.
Later reporting described his actions as a split-second resolution to defend a Polish Army officer, a second that turned central to the case as advocates sought increased recognition for what they argue was conspicuous gallantry above and past the decision of responsibility.
New York lawmakers, together with U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), urged Army management to assist the improve, citing eyewitness accounts, battlefield documentation and allied testimony.
Schumer known as the act “the definition of selfless bravery” throughout a Staten Island remembrance ceremony in Could 2024. Malliotakis stated at a district information convention in December 2025 that Ollis “gave his life so others might reside.”
Advocates level to broader frustration with how not often the navy revisits valor awards as soon as they’re finalized, even when new accounts or stress campaigns emerge.
In December 2025, the Army formally endorsed the improve advice, clearing the ultimate inside hurdle.
‘It is About Michael’s Story’
The second feels each hopeful and heavy, a mixture the household says has adopted practically each milestone since their son was killed in Afghanistan.
“This has by no means been about ceremony,” Linda Ollis stated. “It’s about ensuring Michael’s story is informed the precise manner.”
They spoke with delight about Michael’s legacy, gratitude for the Staten Island group that by no means stopped remembering him and the exhaustion of watching the case transfer by years of evaluations, management adjustments and unanswered timelines.
We wished folks to actually perceive what Michael did that day. He didn’t simply save one life. He saved many. – Linda Ollis
Robert Ollis, the daddy, stated the household initially struggled to know the complete scope of what had occurred.
“They saved telling us he was a hero,” he stated. “At first, we thought they need to say that to each household. Then they defined what Michael really did.”
The dad and mom stated recognition wouldn’t change the selection their son made in these remaining moments, however it will form how the nation remembers.
“The wait was by no means a few ceremony,” Robert stated. “It was about honor.”
The Case for the Medal
The trouble to improve Ollis’ award started inside months of his loss of life, after his dad and mom reviewed after-action studies and spoke with service members who witnessed the assault.
Ollis was credited with pushing a Polish officer out of the trail of a suicide bomber moments earlier than the explosion. Witness statements later confirmed his motion additionally shielded extra troopers positioned close by, limiting casualties in an space crowded with coalition forces.
Supporters say the delay by no means mirrored doubt about his valor, solely the warning of a system that not often reopens closed awards selections.
After a number of evaluations, board findings and command endorsements, the Army accomplished its evaluate in December 2025 and forwarded the advice to the White Home.
Now the President Decides
Solely the president can approve a Medal of Honor.
Authority rests with the White Home after navy evaluations are full and the secretary of the Army indicators off on the advice. No deadline exists. No public clarification is required. The choice can come rapidly or stay unresolved.
Uncertainty has develop into the ultimate stage of a journey that started greater than a decade in the past.
“We don’t know when,” Linda stated. “We don’t know the way it will occur. We simply understand it’s there now.”
