The medal is presented to the next of kin of Massachusetts service members killed in action or in the line of duty in a combat area.
FREETOWN — Tyler Trahan, who died at 22 while serving in Iraq in the U.S. Navy, will receive the Massachusetts Medal of Liberty.
The medal is presented to the next of kin of Massachusetts service members killed in action or in the line of duty in a combat area.
“I’m proud to get it for my son, posthumously,” said his father, Jean Pierre Trahan of East Freetown.
Trahan was an explosive ordnance disposal technician, and he was trying to defuse a roadside bomb when it exploded, his father said. Petty Officer 2nd Class Trahan was deployed alongside a Navy Seal team at the time of his death on April 30, 2009, two days before his 23rd birthday.
“Tyler was a hero,” he father said. “We’re very proud that he’s receiving this prestigious medal.”
The East Freetown roundabout at the intersection of Mason, Chase and County roads is named in his honor.
Trahan grew up in East Freetown and attended the Freetown public schools as a child. In 2004, he graduated from Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School, where he was quarterback of the football team. He attended Massachusetts Maritime Academy and enlisted in the Navy in 2006.
The Massachusetts Medal of Liberty is gold, shaped like a heart and embossed with a star. It hangs from a purple ribbon edged in black. The medal is given in the name of the governor of Massachusetts as commander-in-chief of the commonwealth.
Surviving family members apply for the Medal of Liberty through the Office of the Adjutant General.
State Rep. Paul Schmid’s office is working to schedule an award ceremony, but no date has been set, according to legislative director Jessica Katon.
In addition to Trahan’s father, close relatives in the area include his mother, Maureen Trahan; sister, Molly Lecuyer; and uncle, Paul R. Trahan.
Other military honors previously awarded to Trahan include the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V” (Valor) Distinguishing Device, Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, and Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, according to a U.S. Navy news release at the time of his death.