Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer reenlists in Marine Corps

Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer reenlisted in the United States military in 2025 at 36 years old, becoming the first recipient of the award to ever reenlist, Fox News reported. He completed reconnaissance Marine training at 38 years old and called the experience the hardest thing he has ever done in his life. He returned to uniform 15 years after he initially left the Marine Corps. [1]

Meyer told Fox News Digital that his desire to serve did not end when his initial commitment to the country finished. He fought in Afghanistan, struggled with his transition home from war, and spent years building a life outside the military before choosing to rejoin the service. [1]

Dakota Louis Meyer serves with the United States Marine Corps Reserve and is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on September 8, 2009, during the Battle of Ganjgal in Kunar Province, Afghanistan. He is the second-youngest living recipient of the Medal of Honor, the third living recipient for either the Iraq War or the war in Afghanistan, and the first living United States Marine in 38 years to receive the honor. [3]

Meyer was born on June 26, 1988, in Columbia, Kentucky. He grew up on his father's farm in Green County, near Columbia and Greensburg, where he engaged in hunting and rural activities. [5]