At the grave of Michael Monsoor, you can often find flowers, American flags and other signs of admiration and appreciation.

Monsoor had not been a Navy SEAL long before the fatal 2006 mission that earned him a posthumous Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest combat decoration.

But the 25-year-old from Orange County has become a hero and household name in frogman circles — and in the larger community of veterans and people who follow military lore.

Michael Anthony Monsoor’s grave at Fort Rosecrans is constantly being adorned with flowers and keepsakes as many people visit it. (Sean M. Haffey)


Monsoor was nearing the end of his first deployment to Iraq in September 2006.

Fighting in the city of Ramadi was intense. In answer to the brutal tactics of al-Qaeda, Sunni tribes were beginning to rally for what would become the Sunni Awakening.

Monsoor’s SEAL Team 3 platoon, on a six-month deployment from Coronado, weathered 35 firefights between April and September.

In May, Monsoor saved a teammate who was shot in the leg. The young SEAL was one of two men who pulled their injured buddy to safety as bullets kicked up the concrete at their feet.


For that mission, Monsoor was awarded the Silver Star, the national’s third-highest combat medal.

Fast forward to Sept. 29.

Monsoor was in a rooftop “hide” with SEAL snipers and eight Iraqi soldiers.

Confrontation was in the air.


After skirmishes between Americans and enemy fighters stretched all day, Ramadi residents blocked off the roads and warned al-Qaeda that U.S. forces were inside. The local mosque issued a call to fight the Americans.

A machine gunner, Monsoor was positioned with his weapon toward the likely path of the enemy.

He was watching for action through a scope when — from an unseen location — an enemy fighter tossed a grenade into the sniper hide. It bounced off Monsoor’s chest and hit the ground.

The SEAL yelled “grenade” as he rose.


According to the Navy summary of action, Monsoor was closest to the exit and could have escaped.

Instead, he jumped on the explosive, taking its blast with his body. He died 30 minutes later of his wounds.

Monsoor is the only SEAL to receive the Medal of Honor for actions in the Iraq War. The loss hit the close-knit Naval Special Warfare community hard.

At the funeral at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, other SEALs took off their trident pins and stuck them on top of the coffin. So many SEALs did it, according to a video clip of the proceedings, the coffin appeared to be covered in gold.


The event is also loosely portrayed in the 2012 movie “Act of Valor.”

But Monsoor was perhaps an unlikely sailor.

His father and older brother were Marines. A football player at Garden Grove High School, Monsoor has been described as trying to find his place after graduating. He surprised his family by enlisting in the Navy.

He first trained as a quarter master — a sailor in charge of navigational charts — but then was accepted into the rigorous SEAL entrance program.


He graduated from the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL course in September 2004 and joined Coronado’s SEAL Team 3 in April 2005.

Despite a military career cut short, Monsoor’s name will have a long life in the Navy — and around Southern California.

The Navy’s second Zumwalt-class destroyer is named for Monsoor. The high-tech warship is under construction in Bath, Maine, and is expected to be delivered to the fleet in 2017.

In late 2014, the Naval Special Warfare La Posta training complex in eastern San Diego County was renamed Camp Michael Monsoor.


At the time, Monsoor’s mother, Sally, said, “Mike would have loved being here. He loved being a SEAL and loved the guys he worked with.”

Also, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2082 in Lemon Grove is named for Monsoor.

jen.steele@sduniontribune.com