Cedric King

U.S Army Master Sgt. Cedric King grew up as a single child in a single-parent home. As a teen he spent most of his time playing basketball, working and with his mother. Cedric joined the military in 1995 at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. After changing his focus from aviation operations specialist to infantry, Cedric was able to graduate from the US Army Ranger school. During his third deployment, on July 25, 2012 in Afghanistan, his platoon conducted a reconnaissance of a possible explosives distributor in the village creating improvised explosive devices (IED). As Cedric got closer to the hut, the force of a bomb lifted him off his feet and threw him back. He sustained right hand disfigurement and became a bi-lateral amputee.

Since his injury Cedric has earned numerous medals and awards, ran marathons and climbed mountains. His plans for the future are to finish graduate school, complete a full Ironman, continue motivational speaking, climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, launch a nonprofit organization that gives back to low-income communities and provide a home for his wife and daughters to begin again. Cedric says "Love comes from the part of us that is not visible from the outside. It's the part of us that you can't touch but you can definitely feel".

“It is of the highest importance that service members, first responders, and all those who fight for the cause of freedom for our great country be able to experience the total freedom that they fight for. Freedom costs, and is paid for with a very high price, it must not be taken for granted. Gary Sinise and GSF understand the high price of freedom that all service members pay. He continuously fights for those who fight for us all.”

— Cedric King