Mace, Stephan Lee

Stephan Lee Mace was a 21-year-old specialist serving with Troop B, 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, based out of Fort Carson, Colorado. He was from the small town of Lovettsville, Virginia, and deployed to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.

On October 3, 2009, Mace was one of eight American soldiers killed during a complex, day-long battle with insurgents near the village of Ganjgal in Kunar Province, close to the Pakistan border. The unit was part of a joint U.S.-Afghan force that was ambushed while attempting to meet with village elders. Mace was reportedly wounded in the initial attack and later died at Forward Operating Base Bostick.

Operation Enduring Freedom was the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001. By 2009, the conflict was in a period of intense fighting as U.S. forces increased their presence to counter a resurgent Taliban and other insurgent groups, particularly in remote eastern provinces like Kunar.

The battle in Ganjgal resulted in one of the highest single-day U.S. casualty counts of the war at that time. It led to a formal investigation and congressional hearings after allegations that some soldiers' requests for artillery and air support were denied. Mace was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star with Valor.

Mace's name is inscribed on the Afghanistan War Memorial at the National Infantry Museum in Georgia. His death, and the circumstances of the battle, were documented in military reports and subsequent news coverage examining the events of that day.

Stephan Mace was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.

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