News: Honor for Long Island Marine
(Long Island, N.Y.) A welcome ceremony will be held this Saturday in Greenlawn for a Huntington Station marine who lost both his legs in Afghanistan. The twenty-five-year-old was a graduate of Purdue University and a 2003 graduate of Huntington High School. He was a member of the marching band, as well as an Eagle Scout and Boy Scout.
The marine lost both legs above the knee and two fingers while stepping on an improvised explosive device (IED) that was buried in the dirt. The incident occurred last October while he had been leading his platoon on a dismounted patrol of a narrow alley in one of the deadliest provinces of Afghanistan. The marines had been traveling in ranger style, which allows each to follow the footsteps of the man before him.
According to the twenty-five-year-old hero, everyone had to go over the spot and he just happened to be the one to do so when it exploded. He claimed that it wasn’t a big explosion, just one that was powerful enough to take his legs off. At the time of the incident, he was an infantry platoon commander with a heavily hit battalion that had over a dozen amputee injuries.
With the help of platoon members he was brought to safety by a wheelbarrow and remained unconscious until anesthetized in a Medevac Chopper. His heroic actions awarded him the Purple Heart and he participated in physical therapy at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. He also stayed at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
He was given a hero’s welcoming at MacArthur Airport when he returned home and spent Christmas with friends, relatives, and fellow veterans. He was greeted by the Marine Corps Honor Guard, the Patriot Guard Riders, Boy Scouts, and Blue Star Mothers of Long Island. In addition marching band members, councilmen, and local dignitaries were also present for his arrival.
The Suffolk County Executive presented him with a proclamation and he was escorted by police into a limousine with his family. Police followed the vehicle as it traveled through an arch of American flags set up by multiple fire departments. Children waved flags in the street and residents cheered for him as he passed.
His mother, a teacher at Northport High School, organized a basketball tournament that was designed to help his family. A not-for-profit organization called Building Homes for Huntington Heroes, along with the Broadway Salute, helped to make his home handicap accessible. The organization raises funds for the building of homes that accommodate wounded and disabled veterans, providing them with new conditions and helping them rebuild their lives.
An estimated hundred-and-seventy-five troops required amputations last year. Sixty-five of them had to undergo the loss of two limbs or more. Building Homes for Huntington heroes is currently accepting donations. Long Islanders are urged to demonstrate their support in honor of their heroes this Memorial Day weekend.
