Posted on 08/22/2005 9:07:51 PM PDT by SandRat
PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Mike Mullen presented the Purple Heart to Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Jonathan D. Bryant Aug. 19 during an all hands call at the Naval Aviation Memorial Chapel aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla.
Bryant received the decoration - one of the world’s oldest military decorations still awarded today - for injuries he received in combat while serving his second tour of duty as a corpsman with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) in May 2004. He was wounded while assisting injured Marines during a prolonged gun battle in Western Iraq.
"This Sailor’s action says a lot about the Navy and Marine Corps team,” Mullen said to those attending the all hands call. “There’s no more responsible group, especially while in the field, than that of hospital corpsmen. The Marines you served with will remember you for years to come.”
“I would do everything they (Marines) would do. I’m basically a Marine with a Navy nameplate is what they used to tell me," Bryant said. “The only difference was that I have the medical knowledge."
On May 14, 2004, Bryant and his platoon were patrolling the streets of Husaybah, Iraq, when the unit was hit by an explosion and engaged in a 14-hour gunfight, resulting in Marine casualties and injuries, including Bryant.
“I was in the middle of the patrol behind the first fire team when we came upon this damaged brick wall. We didn’t know it, but there was an IED (improvised explosive device) behind the wall,” Bryant explained. “As we reached the wall, the IED detonated and the first fire team disappeared in a blanket of smoke. After the dust settled, I ran to the aid of my fellow Marines to help with their wounds and assist with medical evacuations.”
Only hours later, after reporting to his senior corpsman, did Bryant realize that he had suffered shrapnel wounds.
“I saw dried blood covering my right hand," he recounted. "I raised my sleeve [and] found where I was hit with shrapnel on my arm. I didn’t really notice it right away. I was concerned with taking care of my Marines."
Bryant, who graduated in 2001 from North Central High School in Lebeau, La., is stationed at Naval Hospital (NH) Pensacola’s Family Practice Clinic. He is gearing up for another possible deployment in September.
There are more than 100 Sailors, including doctors, surgeons, nurses and corpsmen, currently deployed from the command. Additional staff members are gearing up for deployments to such areas as Iraq, Kuwait and Eastern Europe.
For related news, visit the Naval Hospital Pensacola, Fla. Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/nh_pensacola/.
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