He is a real “American badass,” as a young Marine put it Wednesday night, when friends, fans and fellow service members gathered at Emmett O’Lunney’s Pub in New York City to celebrate and congratulate Kris “Tanto” Paronto on his second book, “The Ranger Way.”
Paronto is a former Army Ranger from the 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment and private security contractor who has deployed throughout South America, Central America, the Middle East and North Africa.
He also worked with the U.S. Government’s Global Response Staff, conducting low-profile security in high-threat environments throughout the world. Paronto was part of the CIA annex security team that responded to the terrorist attack on the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11, 2012, and helped save more than 20 lives while fighting off terrorists from the CIA Annex for more than 13 hours.
Kris “Tonto” Paronto was recently on SiruisXM Radio promoting his new book. (Twitter)
But on Wednesday, he was reflective as he spoke about his new book.
“The book was an opportunity to do something that later down the line, I can say I did,” Paronto said. When offered the opportunity to write this book – which details his life beyond Benghazi – he could not say no.
“I’d be really stupid not to do it,” Paronto said.
As it pertains to just about everything in life, Paronto said he did not “want to live with any regrets.”
Where “13 Hours in Benghazi” delves into the details of that event, Paronto’s new book is about something that was harder to write about, Paronto said – his life and failures.
“Writing the book was hard,” Paronto said. “I had to stalk about stuff I failed at.”
More importantly, though, the book is about “picking yourself back up,” learning from those failures and persevering, Paronto said.
Kris “Tonto” Paronto celebrates his book launch in New York City. (Twitter)
“I hope it inspires people,” he added. “It’s about never giving up. It’s about failing – a lot. And it’s about picking yourself back up.”
“That’s something this generation needs to understand,” he pointed out.
Paronto’s book is available for purchase on his website.
Paronto was born in Colorado and went on to earn his Master’s Degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
He served four years in the U.S. Army and an additional four years in the U.S. Army National Guard, reaching the rank of Sergeant before becoming a commissioned officer in 2003.
He started contracting for Blackwater Security Consulting in 2003 and continued to deploy on various security contracts, to include the Global Response Staff until 2013.
Paronto has been involved in security operations in hostile environments for more than 10 years. His team’s involvement with the Benghazi attack was paramount in saving American lives and assets.
He is a proven leader, teammate and friend to those who have deployed with him, and a devout father to three children.
[revad2]
