---
title: "Watch Medal of Honor hero Kyle Carpenter celebrate his ‘Alive Day’ in this remarkable video"
description: "Kyle Carpenter, the youngest living Medal of Honor recipient, celebrated his 10th alive day with a moving video on Friday"
date: "2020-11-20"
modified: "2020-11-20"
authors:
  - name: "James Clark"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/james-clark.md"
url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/medal-of-honor-kyle-carpenter-alive-day/"
categories:
  - "Afghanistan War"
  - "History"
  - "Marine Corps"
  - "Military Branches"
  - "News"
  - "Past Conflicts"
tags:
  - "video"
---

# Watch Medal of Honor hero Kyle Carpenter celebrate his ‘Alive Day’ in this remarkable video

![Kyle Carpenter](<https://taskandpurpose.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/kyle-carpenter.jpg>)

Kyle Carpenter, the youngest living Medal of Honor recipient, celebrated his 10th alive day with a moving video on Friday.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CH0cTUBDHgu

Carpenter received the Medal of Honor from President Barack Obama on June 19, 2014, for his actions in Marjah, Afghanistan 10 years ago when he leaped atop a grenade to shield a fellow Marine, absorbing the brunt of the blast with his own body.

"When a hand grenade detonates it sends shrapnel 700 feet, at 24,000 feet per second," Carpenter narrates at the start of the six-minute clip. "On Nov. 21, 2010, those hot pieces of burning steel, laced with gunpowder, tore through my body changing my life forever."

Carpenter's selfless heroism nearly cost him his life. He lost his right eye, many of his teeth, and suffered wounds across his body which led to dozens of surgeries in the years that followed.

Throughout the video, which plays over a montage of footage from his childhood to his recovery to his life now, Carpenter talks about what that day means to him, and what he's taken from it.

"No matter where you are in life, no matter how hard you've been knocked down, no matter how dark and difficult the days that lie ahead may be, always remember: You are worth it, and the smallest of steps completes the grandest of journeys."

***Related:** **[Medal of Honor recipient Kyle Carpenter is coming out with a book he says 'will truly help people'](<https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/kyle-carpenter-book.md>)***

## Author
James Clark is the editor-in-chief of Task & Purpose. He is a Marine veteran and former combat correspondent. He deployed twice to Afghanistan with 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, first to Marjah in 2010, and then to Kajaki and Sangin in 2011.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://twitter.com/JamesWClark>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/jclarkjournalism/>)

## More

- [This is all that was left of Kyle Carpenter’s M4 after the attack that led to his Medal of Honor](<https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/kyle-carpenter-medal-of-honor-rifle.md>)
- [Kyle Carpenter Is The Medal Of Honor Recipient The Marine Corps Needs](<https://taskandpurpose.com/news/kyle-carpenter-medal-honor-recipient-marine-corps-needs.md>)
- [Medal of Honor recipient Kyle Carpenter is coming out with a book he says ‘will truly help people’](<https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/kyle-carpenter-book.md>)
- [Kyle Carpenter Stole The Sergeant Major Of The Marine Corps’ Chair](<https://taskandpurpose.com/news/kyle-carpenter-stole-the-sergeant-major-of-the-marine-corps-chair.md>)
- [MOH Recipient Kyle Carpenter Cleared Of Hit-And-Run Charge](<https://taskandpurpose.com/news/moh-recipient-kyle-carpenter-cleared-hit-run-charge.md>)
- [MoH Recipient Kyle Carpenter Remembers The Day He Stepped On The Yellow Footprints](<https://taskandpurpose.com/news/moh-recipient-kyle-carpenter-remembers-day-stepped-yellow-footprints.md>)
- [Kyle Carpenter Reflects On His Sacrifice, Hardship In Upcoming Profile](<https://taskandpurpose.com/news/kyle-carpenter-reflects-sacrifice-hardship-upcoming-profile.md>)
- [Kyle Carpenter earned the Medal of Honor for jumping on a grenade in Afghanistan. He believes you were worth the sacrifice](<https://taskandpurpose.com/history/kyle-carpenter-you-are-worth-it.md>)