PDA

View Full Version : Vet told to buy own Purple Heart gets it for free



thedrifter
08-21-07, 11:13 AM
Vet told to buy own Purple Heart gets it for free
Houston Chronicle ^ | Aug. 21, 2007 | RICHARD STEWART

PEARLAND — This time, Nyles Reed didn't have to pay for his Purple Heart medal.

Monday, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn awarded him the medal, saying it is "embarrassing" Reed was ever told he'd have to pay $42 to get his own.

The 75-year-old retired salesman got a standing ovation at a packed luncheon of the Pearland and Alvin Chambers of Commerce.

Navy officials notified him a couple of weeks ago that he had qualified for the medal 55 years ago as a Marine sergeant in Korea.

The medals were out of stock, officials told him in a letter. He got a nice certificate, but was told that if he wanted a medal to go with it, he'd have to either buy his own or reapply in 90 days.

Cornyn, R-Texas, said no combat veteran should have to pay for his own medals, and his staff made sure Reed got a medal provided by the federal government.

The medal Reed received Monday does create a problem. Reed already has a Purple Heart he bought at a Houston military goods store.

Reed said he took his certificate to the store to prove he was entitled to the award, but was amazed to find out all he needed was the $42.

"I've heard of people having medals they aren't entitled to. Maybe they'll take it back and refund my money," Reed said with a grin.

Back on June 22, 1952, Reed was heading for an artillery observation post near Panmunjom when a Chinese artillery shell blew his Jeep over, causing a deep gash in his cheek.

Reed went to a nearby aid station and got about 10 stitches in his wound. He still has the scar beneath his left eye.

"All I knew was that the Chinese were attacking, and they needed me at that observation post," he said.

His Jeep turned out to be as tough as he was. After it was put back up on its wheels, it took Reed to the observation post.

Because he didn't stick around at the aid station long enough to give anybody his name, there were no official records of his wound.

After seeing other veterans getting medals decades after they were in combat, Reed decided about three years ago to try to get his Purple Heart. "I had a couple of buddies who are still around who knew what happened, and they helped me," Reed said.

The heart-shaped medal was established in 1932 to honor members of the military wounded or killed during enemy action.

Reed said he wrote members of Congress, the secretary of defense and even the president.

"The most help I got was from Cornyn's office," he said.

He said he was deluged with letters of support after a story in the Houston Chronicle last week about Reed being told he would have to buy his own medal. "Some people even sent me checks to pay for the medal," he said.

"I'm especially proud of having this for my family," Reed said. He and his wife, Frances, have three children, eight grandchildren and eight great-granchildren.

He said he often wears a cap proclaiming he's a veteran.

"You know, they often call that the forgotten war," Reed said. "As long as I'm around it won't be forgotten."

Ellie

thedrifter
08-21-07, 07:28 PM
Marine pins on Purple Heart, 55 years late
By Philip Ewing and Michael Hoffman - Staff writers
Posted : Tuesday Aug 21, 2007 17:42:23 EDT

Almost two weeks after a former Marine received a certificate confirming he had earned a Purple Heart during the Korean War — along with a letter that said there weren’t any medals “in stock” — he was personally awarded the medal by a Texas senator Monday.

Nyles Reed, 75, received the Purple Heart at a luncheon at the Lion’s Club in his hometown of Pearland, Texas, from Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Reed has spent the past three years submitting paperwork to receive the medal for injuries he suffered 55 years ago.

“I’d just like to have passed out,” said Reed. “I’m just overwhelmed.”

The National Military Personnel Records Center in St. Louis issued Reed the certificate and a letter advising him to re-apply for the physical medal after 90 days, when there might be more medals in stock, he said. But it also contained a list of civilian sources where he could just buy a Purple Heart.

Soon, newspapers and TV broadcasts around the U.S. began reporting the story of the veteran wounded in combat whose government told him to buy his own medal.

But a spokesman for the Navy Personnel Command in Millington, Tenn., said the letter didn’t actually tell Reed to buy the medal; it just included that as an option.

Directly under the statement advising Reed to reapply after 90 days, the letter reads: “Foreign awards, star attachments, badges and some ribbons are not stocked/issued by the Department of the Navy, but may be obtained from a civilian dealer of military supplies. We are enclosing a list of commercial stores that the requestor may contact for further assistance.”

So instead of waiting 90 days to reapply, Reed bought his own medal for $42 at a local Army surplus store. He isn’t sure what he’ll do with the extra medal now that he has two, Reed said.

Since the national media caught wind of Reed’s story, he said he has received checks from friends and strangers who told him, “You shouldn’t have to pay for your own medal.”

When Cornyn heard about the case, he was able to get the Navy Department to issue Reed his own medal, which was mailed Aug. 16 to Cornyn to formally present to Reed.

“Today, a 50-year-old offer was accepted, and a brave Texan received the recognition he had long been due,” Cornyn said in an official statement.

Reed — a sergeant with 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, at the time — was a forward observer near Panmunjom, Korea on June 22, 1952, when a 76mm artillery round flipped over his Jeep and threw him through its windshield.

“I bled like a stuck pig,” Reed said.

Afterward, he ran to a nearby aid station, where a Navy corpsman sewed him up. The corpsman asked Reed, “do you want a Purple Heart?” to which Reed responded, “I ain’t got time!” before running back to the front, Reed said.

In 2004, he saw a newspaper story about Korean War veterans who finally received their Purple Hearts, so he decided to try for one, too. That started a prolonged process of getting his official records, corralling witnesses, filing requests and waiting.

“All along, all I wanted was just to get what I had earned,” Reed said.

Ellie