Guardsmen finally get their due

Eric Leake

Monday, March 7, 2005 | 10:57 a.m.

Far from the roads of Iraq where they were injured, two Nevada guardsmen were finally awarded the Purple Heart Sunday.

Friends, family and fellow soldiers in the 72nd Military Police applauded as Sgt. Henry Lujan and Spc. Willard Hubler were presented their medals in a morning ceremony at the Silver Flag Alpha Range on the Nellis Air Force Range.

"It just takes your breath away," said Hubler, 23, the new medal pinned to his fatigues. "The tradition, you can feel it. It's in the air."

Hubler, Lujan, and six other soldiers were in a 2 1/2 ton truck on June 27, 2003, when they struck a roadside bomb and overturned. Initially only one of the soldiers in the truck was awarded the medal; the others were denied medals.

The Nevada Army Guard reapplied for the remaining seven soldiers, and two others also injured in a later roadside bombing. Of those, Hubler and Lujan are the first to be awarded.

For Lujan, 35, who suffered a leg injury that may have ended his military career, the award was bittersweet.

"I may no longer be in the military because of what happened there. For that I'm sad," Lujan said.

He said the medal was a great honor with a storied history, but added, "that's one award when you go to combat you don't want to get."

The Purple Heart is awarded to those in the military who are wounded as a direct result of enemy actions. It is also awarded posthumously to relatives of those killed in action or who die of combat injuries.

Lujan said he hopes his fellow soldiers who shared that fateful truck ride are similarly honored, and he paid tribute to them in accepting the medal. He presented the company with the wrecked truck's twisted and rusted wheel rim.

He said that despite the wait, he was glad to finally receive the medal at home rather than in Iraq.

"They have a saying: 'They pin it when you win it,' " Lujan said. "But it makes me really happy to be awarded here."

About 55 friends and family members, as well as representatives from the state's congressional offices, observed the award ceremony from under a camouflaged net beneath a blue sky.

Ember Hubler, wife of Spc. Hubler, was among those at the ceremony. She could not describe the mix of feelings and pride she had in watching her husband being honored.

"There's just no words, really, to describe the feelings I had. It was overwhelming," she said. "I'm very thankful that he's alive and home. That's the true reward right there."

Willard Hubler lost hearing in one ear as a result of the roadside bomb and his back was injured.

The Henderson-based 72nd Military Police served in Iraq in 2003. They set up and coordinated operations at the Abu Ghraib prison. They were replaced by the 372nd Military Police, which was at the center of the prison scandal.

Commander of the Nevada Army Guard, Brig. Gen. Randall Sayer, praised the company for their service in Iraq during the ceremony.

"When this unit got on the airplane and went to Iraq, it didn't check its integrity at the door," Sayer said.

He said that he has read reports on what happened at the prison. "I never read one ill word about the 72nd," Sayer said. "People were confused as to how this unit could get it right and others couldn't."

The Nevada Army Guard is pursuing Purple Heart commendations for the seven remaining soldiers who are being considered for the honor.

"We have not been told yes or no on those," he said.

Sayer added that while the Purple Heart is an individual recognition, it is an honor to the entire company.

"Every soldier standing out there is a part of the award," he said.

Sgt. Jeremiah McLoughlin is one of those waiting for a Purple Heart.

"I know that it's being worked on. I have patience," McLoughlin said.

He said 100 pieces of shrapnel remain in his body from when the Humvee that he and another soldier were in struck a roadside bomb on Aug. 19, 2003. The event is something he said he can't forget.

McLoughlin said he was proud to see his fellow soldiers rewarded. He tried to explain to a civilian the significance of a Purple Heart.

"It's the time-honored tradition," he said. "It's about your value, your honor and integrity."