Would you like to earn a Purple Heart? Not many people would like to receive a Purple Heart because it is awarded by the U.S. Armed Forces to members who were wounded in combat. Here is a true story of a Purple Heart winner. My grandpa fought in the Vietnam War, where he earned a Purple Heart. Here is how he got it.
It all started when my grandpa’s platoon was on patrol in North Vietnam at about 10:00 AM when they were attacked by a battalion of North Vietnamese soldiers. During the initial battle, a dozen or more U.S. soldiers were wounded and were in danger of falling into the hands of the North Vietnamese. At that point, my grandpa jumped off his track vehicle to save one of the wounded soldiers. As he was dragging the soldier back to the track vehicle, a North Vietnamese soldier launched a rocket propelled grenade at my grandpa. The grenade landed about two yards away from my grandpa and exploded. One soldier was killed and metal pieces hit my grandpa’s face, knocking him out. A little while later, my grandpa was dusted off to a hospital. (Dusted off is the Army term for taken by a helicopter to a hospital.) Because of my grandpa’s bravery the man who he helped was saved.
My grandpa has some other interesting stories like when he shot an enemy soldier out of a tree but that is for my next blog.
I have attached a few pictures. The one on the right is of his actual CT scan picture of the shrapnel my grandfather’s shoulder. The one on the left is of my grandfather shortly after being awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with the V devise for valor.
