Hometown: Casselberry, FL 
Branch: U.S. Marine Corps
Unit: 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force
Military Honors: Bronze Star, Purple Heart
Date of Sacrifice: August 29, 2010 - KIA in Helmand Province, Afghanistan
Age: 36
Conflict: War in Afghanistan, 2001-2021

Floyd Holley was serving his first tour in Afghanistan following two combat tours in Iraq. In the face of enemy fire, his Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) team cleared a route that enabled the 1st Platoon to seize a key area of high ground west of Safar Bazaar. Holley was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star in 2011.

Holley wrestled and played linebacker for the Lyman High School (Longwood, Florida) football team. He also ran track and played football for Central Methodist College (Fayette, Missouri).

in November 1997, Holley enlisted in the Marine Corps and attended recruit training at Parris Island, South Carolina. Upon graduation he was assigned to 1st Radio Batallion at Marine Corps Base Hawaii. During his tour there he was deployed to Kuwait in support of 1st Intelligence Battalion, and also went with Joint Task Force Full Accounting to Vietnam.

Holley reenlisted and was accepted into the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) program in May 2001, then departed for Naval Explosive Ordnance Disposal School at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, in August of that year. During this deployment, Holly served in Iraq, Kenya, and Djibouti, Africa. Holley also served his country in Vietnam, and returned to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

After completing tours in Iraq in 2003 and 2007, Gunnery Sergeant Holley signed up for a tour in Afghanistan. Assigned to the 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group—based at Camp Pendleton (Oceanside, California)—Holley was killed in action in Helmand Province.

Gunnery Sergeant Holley’s Bronze Star for citation describes his actions:

During Operation Roadhouse II, Holley led his team in a night assault to seize high ground west of Safar Bazaar. It was known to be a key to the enemy’s defensive plan for Safar Bazaar. When they entered the area he immediately led his team into action without hesitation or regard for his own safety and began to clear the area of IEDs. Following the route he courageously cleared, 1st Platoon was able to seize the area. For days without the chance of reinforcement, he searched, found and disposed of numerous explosives in the surrounding area, often in the face of enemy small arms fire. On Aug. 29, 2010, while disarming an IED under enemy small arms fire, Holley was mortally wounded by a premature detonation.

Sources
Military Times—Honor the Fallen: Marine Gunnery Sgt. Floyd C. Holley
Orlando Sentinel, Aug. 30, 2010: Marine Sgt. Floyd Holley of Casselberry dies in Afghanistan
Defense Visual Information Distribution Service: Marine posthumously awarded Bronze Star for valor
Fox News: Johnny Joey Jones honors servicemen killed in action (video)
Facebook: GySgt Floyd Holley Memorial Page
Dignity Memorial: Floyd Earl Holley
Burial Site: Find a Grave