Army Ranger involved in "Black Hawk Down" Mission
Keni Thomas is an engaging speaker whose story captivates audiences from beginning to end. The highly successful movie "Blackhawk Down" is based his Army company’s mission in Mogadishu, Somalia. His presentations focus on leadership, teamwork, and the importance of training. From the motto of "train as you fight. fight as you train," Keni shows how an emphasis on training and continuous improvement plays a vital role in the survival and success in battle, and in life.
In the summer of 1993, SGT Thomas and B Company were deployed to Mogadishu, Somalia as part of a special operations package called Task Force Ranger. Their mission was to find and capture a criminal warlord named Mohammed Farrah Aideed. On the 3rd of October, Keni and his fellow rangers distinguished themselves in an 18 hour fire fight that would later be recounted in the highly successful book and movie “Blackhawk Down”. Nineteen Americans died and 78 were wounded in the worst urban combat seen by US troops since WWII.
SSG Thomas stayed in the Army for 3 more years as an assistant team leader for a six man ranger reconnaissance team. He earned his master parachutist rating with over 380 military free fall jumps. He completed the Special Forces Combat Diver course, became an Advanced EMT and was one of ten Americans to complete the Belgium Commando Course.
In additional to numerous speaking engagements for organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to Boy Scouts, Keni now works full time as a Nashville recording artist. His band Cornbread was featured in the movie Sweet Home Alabama. And his song “Not Me” can be heard right now on country stations nationwide. He also worked as a military advisor on the Mel Gibson movie “We Were Soldiers”. He has also made numerous appearances as a military analyst on CNN, PBS, NBC Dateline, Fox and the History Channel.
Keni Thomas is a graduate of the University of Fla. and the recipient of the Bronze Star for Valor.