1LT Michael L. Runyan

Class of 2008

Enshrined 2016

Michael L. Runyan was born on November 29, 1985, in Ashland, Ohio, to Jeff and Renee (Rebera) Runyan. He graduated from Ashland High School in 2004 where he was a qualifier for the State Golf Tournament his junior year. He participated in the Xavier University Army ROTC program and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice in 2008 and was commissioned as an Infantry Second Lieutenant.

While at Xavier, 1LT Runyan was a member of the Pershing Rifles and Ranger Challenge Team, serving as Captain of the team his senior year. He also participated in intramural sand volleyball, a championship softball team, and was in the Xavier musical his senior year. He attended Air Assault School during the summer, prior to his Senior year and was selected as the Cadet Battalion Commander as a Senior. He lived in Newark, Ohio.

1LT Runyan completed Infantry Basic Officer Leadership Course and was assigned as a Platoon Leader in the 52nd Infantry Battalion, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. He deployed with the Brigade Combat Team to Balad, Iraq sometime in 2009.

On Wednesday, July 21, 2010, while on routine patrol, insurgents attacked 1LT Runyan’s convoy and his vehicle detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) in Muqdadiyah, Iraq. 1LT Michael L. Runyan, 24, died from wounds sustained in the attack. 1LT Runyan is buried in the Greenlawn Memory Gardens, Kingsville, OH.