Photo By Chad Ashe | Maj. Gen. David G. Perkins, commanding general, 4th Infantry Division and the U.S....... read more read more
Spc. Kandi Huggins
1st Advise and Assist Task Force Public Affairs
1st Infantry Division, U.S. Division-North
CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq – Maj. Gen. David G. Perkins, commanding general, U.S. Division-North, presented the Purple Heart Medal to 1st Lt. Chad Truslow, fire support officer, Company A, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment at Contingency Operating Site Warrior Dec. 9.
“Receiving the Purple Heart is an immense honor, but it's not something I really had on my 'to-do' list when I deployed,” said Truslow, who hails from Waynesboro, Va. “I have friends who have received this award for injures far worse than the ones I sustained; a few didn't get to go home.”
Truslow was injured while traveling in a convoy Nov. 3 when an insurgent attacked his vehicle with a grenade. The attack also wounded two other Soldiers; Capt. Anthony Smith, commander, Company A, 1st Bn., 14th Inf. Reg., and Spc. Wilburn Norris, the company radio-telephone operator.
“I have every intention of returning home to my wife and daughter, and I hope that when Norris gets his Purple Heart it will be the last one for Task Force Devil,” said Truslow, whose unit is part of the 2nd Advise and Assist Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, from Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, Commander of U.S. Forces in Iraq, awarded Smith, of Braham, Minn., his Purple Heart on Thanksgiving Day at COS Warrior. Norris, of San Antonio, Texas, is scheduled to be awarded his Purple Heart at a later date.
Perkins also used the opportunity to address the Soldiers of the 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, 1st Infantry Division, from Fort Riley, Kan. regarding the significance of their mission deployed to Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn.
Perkins said those present should be grateful to attend a Purple Heart ceremony instead of a memorial service, crediting the fact to the training and dedication of the soldiers who assisted Truslow and the others after the attack.
“Your training and your teamwork paid off, and you demonstrated the mettle for which Task Force ‘Devil’ has already earned a reputation,” said Perkins.
Perkins spoke about the greater significance of Task Force Devil’s mission.
“You are writing the final chapter in the history of the seven-year conflict in Iraq,” he told the assembled audience. “Throughout history, wars have been decided not by how they started, but by how they were finished.”
Perkins pointed out that even though the American Revolution began badly for the colonists, in the end it was the American people’s long-term commitment to winning the war that led it to the creation of a strong and independent nation.
Likewise, the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor was a major defeat for the Americans at the start of World War II, he added. Yet, as the nation bonded together and mobilized for war, the American people again prevailed because of their strength and commitment to the fight.
“Whatever has happened before us here in Iraq, it is now up to us to bring this war to a successful conclusion,” said Perkins. “I’m confident that with Soldiers like 1st Lt. Truslow and the rest of Task Force Devil, we will accomplish that end.”
| Date Taken: | 12.09.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 12.18.2010 14:49 |
| Story ID: | 62241 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WARRIOR, IQ |
| Web Views: | 129 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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