Capt. Michael Yury Tarlavsky, 30, was a Special Forces officer assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Ky.

Tarlavsky, a native of New Jersey, was born on May 5th, 1974.

He was fatally wounded in action on Aug. 12, 2004 in Najaf, Iraq when his unit came under small arms fire and grenade attack.
He entered the Army in July of 1996 as an infantry officer and completed the Special Forces Qualifications Course at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, Fort Bragg, N.C., in 2001. He then moved to his first assignment as a detachment commander in Company C, 1st Battalion, 5th SFG. He has deployed in support of the Global War on Terrorism to both Afghanistan and Iraq.

His awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medals, Army Achievement Medals, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, National Defense Service Medals, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Overseas Ribbon. He also earned the Air Assault and Parachutist Badges, as well as the Ranger Tab.

Tarlavsky is survived by his wife Tricia and their 10 month-old son, Joseph Michael, both of Clarksville, Tennessee.

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