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About
David Gregory Bellavia, nicknamed 'Bell', is an Iraq War veteran, Medal of Honor recipient, and conservative commentator from Buffalo, New York. Born as the youngest of four sons to the late Dr. William Bellavia and Marilyn Brunacini, he grew up in Waterport, New York, influenced by his grandfather, a World War II Army veteran of the Normandy Campaign. Bellavia enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1999 and served until 2005 as a Staff Sergeant in Company A, Task Force 2-2, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, deploying to Kosovo and Iraq. He participated in the Second Battle of Fallujah (Operation Phantom Fury), where on November 10, 2004—his 29th birthday—he single-handedly cleared an insurgent-filled house under intense fire, killing four insurgents and wounding a fifth, saving his trapped platoon. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor on June 25, 2019, by President Trump (upgraded from the Silver Star), along with the Bronze Star Medal, two Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, the New York State Conspicuous Service Cross (2005), and numerous service medals. He was inducted into the New York Veterans' Hall of Fame in 2005. Post-service, Bellavia co-founded Vets for Freedom in 2005 alongside Pete Hegseth, whom he hired to run it, to advocate for victory in the Iraq War. He authored the memoir House to House: An Epic Memoir of War in the City of Death (2007) and returned to Iraq as an embedded reporter in 2006 and 2008. Bellavia has worked as a conservative radio host at WBEN-AM in Buffalo, New York, co-hosting an afternoon show before 2019 and serving as the midday host (9am-12pm) since August 2021. He founded the Deuce Relief Fund in 2019 to support veterans of Task Force 2-2 and is associated with EMPact America, based in Elma, New York. A frequent speaker and media commentator, he is active as a Republican in Western New York and endorsed Donald Trump in 2024 as one of 14 Medal of Honor recipients. Personally, Bellavia is a father of three children and divorced; in 2022, his ex-wife filed a federal lawsuit against him and the Orleans County Sheriff's Office alleging false arrest (outcome unknown).