Columbus, Neb., native Cpl. Nicholas Hardesty, the

Columbus, Neb., native Cpl. Nicholas Hardesty, the machine-guns squad leader with 3rd Platoon, Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, holds security while Afghan Uniformed Police patrolmen and Marines from 3rd Platoon talk to residents of the area. The 22-year-old Hardesty was surprised to see young children working in fields when he first got to Afghanistan. “The kids out here work at such a young age,” said Hardesty. “I knew they worked at a young age, but some of these kids are like three, four years old, and they’re out there bailing hay, farming, tilling. When I was a kid, I never would have thought about doing that at that age.”