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Korean War veteran is awarded Purple Heart 58 years after death  Share
Korean War Veteran Leslie Ray Heath did not get to see or touch the Purple Heart award which has been given to his family in his honor. However, the knowledge that he has finally been recognized for his dedication gives his family a sense of pride in the life they grieved for when they could not see or touch him. Heath was captured by the Chinese Communist forces in 1951. He was declared MIA and his remains were not known until the Democratic People's Republic of Korea returned 17 boxes containing soldier remains in 1993. The uncertainty and long-awaited return of the MIA Korean War Veteran received a hometown welcome on August 20, 2005. At that time, his fellow citizens of Bridgeport showed their appreciation for his military service as they waved American flags and crowded along the streets to watch as a hearse carried Heath's remains to be buried in the Bridgeport City Cemetery.The motorcade included most who only knew him through his service to his country - they were motorcyclists from Rolling Thunder and the Christian Motorcycle Association from Evansville, Ind., Kentucky and Illlinois. A firetruck ladder stretched the American flag over the burial grounds where the haunting sounds of ''Taps'' and gunshots echoed from the rifles of Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. military officers. While the celebration of his life and military service was accompanied by several medals of honor, the anguish of the family who had spent years not knowing the fate of their loved one deepened from the omission of the Purple Heart award from the military regalia. After the burial, his niece Cathy Williams of Richmond, Ind. wrote several letters to the military until she received his Purple Heart award in the mail on April 30, exactly 58 years after his death was officially recorded.
The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the President of the United States to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after April 5, 1917, has been wounded or killed, or who has died after being wounded. An estimated number of those soldiers who received the award for service in the Korean war is 136,936. On October 4, Heath's sister, Lois Heath Croslow, formerly of Lawrence County, passed away. She was laid to rest alongside her brother in the Bridgeport Cemetery. Barbara E. Allender is editor of the Bridgeport Leader.
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