EMU's Ward honored with Purple Heart for injuries suffered in Iraq

Some 20 bullets ricocheted throughout the ambushed Chevy Suburban, hitting all three of its occupants. As pedestrians jumped out of its way, the non-armored vehicle rammed a barrier and went over the wall of 55-gallon drums.

FOR HONOR IN ACTION : Maj. Stephen Ward, Eastern Michigan University Eagle Battalion executive officer and an assistant professor in the department of military science, proudly displays the Purple Heart he was awarded. Ward, a civil engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was wounded during an incident in Mosul, Iraq, in January 2004.

The driver was hit in the neck, a reporter took a bullet in her back and Maj. Stephen Ward caught shrapnel in the right side of his face and right hand during an attack in Mosul, Iraq. Miraculously, all three returned to work that same day.

That was Jan. 19, 2004.

Almost one year later, Ward, Eastern Michigan University Eagle Battalion executive officer and assistant professor in the department of military science, received a Purple Heart. Col. James Coates, 9th Brigade Commander, presented the medal during a ceremony Jan. 10 at University House.

The Purple Heart is awarded, in the name of the president of the United States, to any member of the Armed Forces who has been wounded or killed.

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