Nicholas Brandau has lived in Durango for only a few weeks, but his new hometown already has a reason to be proud of him.

At 5:55 p.m. today, Brandau, a former Marine sergeant, will receive a Bronze Star at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, Calif. He is being recognized for his valor, along with three other members of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, during six days of firearm exchange that took place in June 2012 in Afghanistan. While exposed on a roof, he threw two grenades to force the enemy to withdraw and, with a fellow squad leader, sprinted 200 yards across open ground to recover a mortally wounded soldier.

Brandau is beginning his studies at FLC after 10 years in the Marines. Visit http://tinyurl.com/lk9nrua to learn more about his valor and www.dvidshub.net/webcast/3788 to watch the medal-presentation ceremony.

herald staff