GREENVILLE, S.C. -- A Clemson graduate and Marine has been honored for his actions to save people while serving overseas.
Captain Trey Kennedy received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for Heroism during the USC and Clemson. Clemson game Saturday. The award honors actions taken outside of combat.
On October 11, 2015, Kennedy raced through thick smoke and debris to help rescue victims of a NATO helicopter crash in Afghanistan. He was standing in several inches of jet fuel, which put him at risk for death from an explosion or fire.
The crash killed five of the helicopter's nine passengers.
Despite the honorl, Kennedy says he was just doing his job.
"It's something that I was just a piece of in the entire rescue," he said. "There's many parts of the rescue. Like I said I was just a small piece. If I wasn't there, somebody else would have been there. It's very humbling to come back home to Clemson, South Carolina and to be honored today. It's a great experience. But I
wouldn't be here without some of the support from my family and friends and at the same time what I did it was just a part of my training. It's what Marines do. It's not something that's above and beyond what we're called to do."
Kennedy is a Wren High School graduate and 2008 Clemson graduate.