Two West Virginia National Guard officers received military honors Monday for overpowering a gunman who shot two colleagues in Washington, D.C., last November.
Army National Guard Maj. Ryan Reynolds and Air National Guard Maj. Edwin Stanfield received the Soldier’s Medal and Airman’s Medal, respectively. The awards are the highest given for heroism demonstrated in noncombat situations.
Reynolds, Stanfield, Army Spec. Sarah Beckstrom and Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe were patrolling the nation’s capital the day before Thanksgiving last year when Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national, ambushed the service members with a stolen revolver.
Beckstrom was killed and Wolfe severely wounded. Reynolds and Stanfield subdued Lakanwal and then secured the scene, allowing first responders to provide aid to the injured and protecting others from harm.
“These heroes are part of humanities oldest story: good versus evil; courage versus cowardice; fight versus flight; they chose good that day,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during the Pentagon ceremony.
Reynolds serves as executive officer of 771st Troop Command Battalion, while Stanfield is an intelligence officer with the 167th Airlift Wing.
During the ceremony, attended by members of the Beckstrom family, Wolfe and his family and West Virginia National Guard Adjutant General Maj. Gen. James Seward, West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said Beckstrom’s and Wolfe’s sacrifices would not be forgotten.
“We always pray for the memory of Sarah, and we are so grateful to see you, Andrew,” Morrisey said.
Wolfe and Beckstrom received Purple Heart medals, with President Donald Trump awarding their medals to a wounded Wolfe and to Evalea and Gary Beckstrom, Sarah Beckstrom’s parents, during the State of the Union address on Feb. 24.
Since August 2025, National Guard members from at least nine states have deployed to Washington, D.C., for a mission that’s been described as an effort to reduce crime in the capital.
The service members have performed various tasks, such as providing physical presence in support of law enforcement, participating in community cleanups and serving in administrative and logistics missions.
More than 2,500 Guard members remain deployed in the city and are expected to be there through the end of the year.
For the attack, Lakanwal has been charged with first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill while armed and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
During the ceremony, Morrisey said the state of West Virginia owes a debt of gratitude to the National Guard members who step up to serve.
“When there are no scripts and the cost is potentially your own life, that decision means everything,” Morrisey said. “You have served our country with amazing distinction, including deployments across the world, and you are the very definition of courage.”
Patricia Kime is a senior writer covering military and veterans health care, medicine and personnel issues.
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