(L-R) Lt. Cols. Matthew Palma and Jeffrey Holt. Marine Corps Base Hawaii. May 2011.

Lt. Col. Jeffrey C. Holt, outgoing commanding officer, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, and Lt. Col. Matthew J. Palma, incoming commanding officer, 3/3, salute the national ensign as it passes by during the battalionÕs change of command ceremony at Dewey Square on Marine Corps Base Hawaii, May 26, 2011. Holt, who assumed command of 3/3 in 2009, led the battalion on a deployment to Helmand province, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2010, and received the award for his leadership during the deployment. He relinquished command to Palma, who began his career as a platoon commander with 3/3 in 1996, and most recently served as a planner with G-5, U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific.