User:Rja2015!**

Micah Welintukonis is a US Army veteran, former Chairman Legislative Affairs at American Legion United States of America State of CT, and a former Vice-Chairman of the Town Council in Coventry, CT. He is in the 2018 race running in the Republican primary for governor of Connecticut.

Military Service
Welintukonis joined the U.S. Army in 1994. His first deployment was in Kosovo in 1999. Later in 2005, as a member of the Connecticut National Guard, Welintukonis was deployed to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2012, Welintukonis was deployed to Afghanistan where he was serving as a senior manager & medic for a police mentoring team for about three months. He was severely injured by a suicide bomb attack in their patrol base in Kandahar City. During this attack, Welintukonis rescued two wounded soldiers before returning fire and providing medical care to other wounded comrades around him. Welintukonis retired from the military on May 19, 2016. He still continues to recover from the injuries of the attack in Afghanistan. Some of his awards include the Army Commendation Medal with Valor, the Purple Heart, and the White House Coin.

Public Service
Welintukonis has been recognized at the national level including two invitations to the White House and an invitation to President Obama's 2013 State of the Union Address. He volunteers annually at the CT SWAT Challenge. Welintukonis declared in 2017 his candidacy for Governor of Connecticut. He would succeed Governor Dannel Malloy.

Personal Life
Welintukonis is a husband and father of two, and has two step-children. He resides in Coventry, Connecticut with his wife and children. He has made tv appearance on the food networks "Farm House Rules", and played an extra as an FBI agent in Mark Wahlbergs "Patriots Day"