thedrifter
03-13-07, 06:31 AM
Purple Heart bittersweet for four Marines
CHRISSY VICK / DAILY NEWS STAFF
March 12, 2007 - 12:08PM
Reactions were mixed among four Marines who received purple hearts at the Wounded Warrior Barracks recently.
Some felt proud - others said it was bittersweet.
"This is a day that's kind of hard to explain," said Sgt. Robert Holzinger Jr., 29, of 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, who was injured during his third deployment to Iraq by an IED. "It means I paid a good price."
The four Marines, each with 2nd LAR, were awarded purple hearts together by Lt. Gen. Keith J. Stalder, commanding general of II Marine Expeditionary Force.
Each of the Marines received wounds in combat in the fall of 2006 and are now living aboard Camp Lejeune's Wounded Warrior Barracks.
"Your first job is to get better," Stalder said at the ceremony. "Thank you for your sacrifice and all you've done."
When Stalder pinned the purple ribbon on Holzinger's uniform, it took him back to his first foot patrol as a patrol leader. It was Nov. 11 in northwest Iraq. Holzinger led his Marines into a town near some old IED sites.
"It was a sunny day," Holzinger recalled. "At that moment, all I remember is smoke. I hopped to the ground. Then I noticed my arm was shattered and I was losing blood in my leg."
It all happened in a moment.
"I felt two quarter-sized holes in my face where fragments went through," he said. "I remember spitting out six teeth at that point."
Holzinger was most scared for his mother and how she would feel when she found out.
"I thought it was the end," he said. "The hardest part was the thought of leaving everyone behind."
It's the second time Holzinger has faced such heavy thoughts.
The first time was in a motorcycle accident during pre-deployment leave last year.
He spent six days in a coma, but after waking knew he "couldn't let the young boys go over there by themselves."
Now Holzinger, who hails from Indiana, walks with a cane but is getting better every day. Scars on his face are barely noticeable, hidden behind a wide grin. He says he spends enough time at the Naval Hospital that he "might as well become staff."
But the Wounded Warrior Barracks, where he is among brothers, helps his recovery.
"There isn't anyone that knows how to take care of you better than your own kind," Holzinger said.
Though only two of the four 2nd LAR Marines knew each other before they came to the barracks, they now share a special bond. They relate to one another when no one else can - even their own family.
"Your parents love and care for you, but they don't really understand what you're going through," said Cpl. Noe Aguirre, 22, of Hollywood.
Aguirre was injured Nov. 25 in Iraq while on a foot patrol. He says receiving a purple heart is not something a Marine aspires to. Cpl. Harley Herron, 21, of Wisconsin, said he was just happy to receive his among friends.
"It's all kind of overwhelming," he said. "But it's better with my buddies. I wish I was back with my unit in Iraq."
Herron was the second man in a foot patrol when he was hit by an IED.
"I just remember everything lighting up and falling to the ground," he said. "I got shrapnel to the leg, shoulder, back and lost feeling in my hands."
Herron doesn't consider himself a hero. He says he'd rather it had been he that got injured than someone else. Other Marines were equally humble about their service and their injuries.
"A lot of guys here have the same injuries," said Lance Cpl. Adam Turner, 20, of Washington. "We're not that different from each other."
Turner received severe back and neck injuries when his humvee hit an IED in October.
"I woke up on the ground after my humvee hit 200 pounds of explosives," he said. "It threw me 100 feet and broke my neck, back and bruised my spinal cord. It was pretty scary waking up and not being able to sit up or walk."
He still struggles with short-term memory loss, but is improving daily. Turner is now walking and even worked out in the gym last week.
"Getting a Purple Heart isn't something you aim for," he said. "But when you get it, it means a lot."
Ellie
CHRISSY VICK / DAILY NEWS STAFF
March 12, 2007 - 12:08PM
Reactions were mixed among four Marines who received purple hearts at the Wounded Warrior Barracks recently.
Some felt proud - others said it was bittersweet.
"This is a day that's kind of hard to explain," said Sgt. Robert Holzinger Jr., 29, of 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, who was injured during his third deployment to Iraq by an IED. "It means I paid a good price."
The four Marines, each with 2nd LAR, were awarded purple hearts together by Lt. Gen. Keith J. Stalder, commanding general of II Marine Expeditionary Force.
Each of the Marines received wounds in combat in the fall of 2006 and are now living aboard Camp Lejeune's Wounded Warrior Barracks.
"Your first job is to get better," Stalder said at the ceremony. "Thank you for your sacrifice and all you've done."
When Stalder pinned the purple ribbon on Holzinger's uniform, it took him back to his first foot patrol as a patrol leader. It was Nov. 11 in northwest Iraq. Holzinger led his Marines into a town near some old IED sites.
"It was a sunny day," Holzinger recalled. "At that moment, all I remember is smoke. I hopped to the ground. Then I noticed my arm was shattered and I was losing blood in my leg."
It all happened in a moment.
"I felt two quarter-sized holes in my face where fragments went through," he said. "I remember spitting out six teeth at that point."
Holzinger was most scared for his mother and how she would feel when she found out.
"I thought it was the end," he said. "The hardest part was the thought of leaving everyone behind."
It's the second time Holzinger has faced such heavy thoughts.
The first time was in a motorcycle accident during pre-deployment leave last year.
He spent six days in a coma, but after waking knew he "couldn't let the young boys go over there by themselves."
Now Holzinger, who hails from Indiana, walks with a cane but is getting better every day. Scars on his face are barely noticeable, hidden behind a wide grin. He says he spends enough time at the Naval Hospital that he "might as well become staff."
But the Wounded Warrior Barracks, where he is among brothers, helps his recovery.
"There isn't anyone that knows how to take care of you better than your own kind," Holzinger said.
Though only two of the four 2nd LAR Marines knew each other before they came to the barracks, they now share a special bond. They relate to one another when no one else can - even their own family.
"Your parents love and care for you, but they don't really understand what you're going through," said Cpl. Noe Aguirre, 22, of Hollywood.
Aguirre was injured Nov. 25 in Iraq while on a foot patrol. He says receiving a purple heart is not something a Marine aspires to. Cpl. Harley Herron, 21, of Wisconsin, said he was just happy to receive his among friends.
"It's all kind of overwhelming," he said. "But it's better with my buddies. I wish I was back with my unit in Iraq."
Herron was the second man in a foot patrol when he was hit by an IED.
"I just remember everything lighting up and falling to the ground," he said. "I got shrapnel to the leg, shoulder, back and lost feeling in my hands."
Herron doesn't consider himself a hero. He says he'd rather it had been he that got injured than someone else. Other Marines were equally humble about their service and their injuries.
"A lot of guys here have the same injuries," said Lance Cpl. Adam Turner, 20, of Washington. "We're not that different from each other."
Turner received severe back and neck injuries when his humvee hit an IED in October.
"I woke up on the ground after my humvee hit 200 pounds of explosives," he said. "It threw me 100 feet and broke my neck, back and bruised my spinal cord. It was pretty scary waking up and not being able to sit up or walk."
He still struggles with short-term memory loss, but is improving daily. Turner is now walking and even worked out in the gym last week.
"Getting a Purple Heart isn't something you aim for," he said. "But when you get it, it means a lot."
Ellie