Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe received a posthumous Medal of Honor award on Dec. 16. He is the first Black military member to be awarded the medal since 9/11. 

Cashe's widow, Tamara, accepted the honor on his behalf, The Washington Post reports.

Cashe died at the age of 35 on Nov. 8, 2005, while rescuing his comrades after his Bradley Fighting Vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Iraq.

Cashe instantly set out to rescue six soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter who were pinned inside, according to the U.S. Army website. He went inside the vehicle at least six times to save his fellow soldiers and had 72% of his body burned. He later died at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.

"Throughout the entire engagement, Cashe repeatedly placed himself in extreme danger to protect his team and to defeat the enemy. … Cashe's extraordinary heroism and selflessness beyond the call of duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the United States Army," the U.S. Army stated on its website, according to People. 

Initially, the sergeant received the Silver Star to honor his heroic deed. However, an online campaign urged for Cashe to be bestowed the Medal of Honor, the highest military bravery award in the country, Today reports. 

Former President Donald Trump was supposed to grant Cashe the posthumous honor, but the Jan. 6 insurrection thwarted those plans. President Joe Biden presented Cashe's widow with his award in a ceremony accompanied by Master Sgt. Earl Plumlee and the family of Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Celiz.

"It's important that he receives it as a soldier, for what he did. I don't ever want anybody to say, 'He got it because he was a Black man and there was a push,' No. He got it because he deserved it," Cashe's sister, Kasinal Cashe White, said on Today in Nov. 2020.

Cashe leaves behind his wife and three children: daughters Lajada and Alexis and son Andrew.

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