New York National Guard

« Back to Recent News

Glenville resident Justin Oaks, receives long-delayed Purple Heart medal from New York Army National Guard

Oaks was injured during 2006 attack while serving in Iraq

Buffalo, New York (05/19/2025) — The New York Army National Guard presented former U.S. Army Pfc. Justin Oaks, a Glenville resident, with a long- delayed Purple Heart on Saturday, May 17, during a ceremony at Buffalo's Connecticut Street Army.

Oaks was knocked out when and improvised explosive device hit his Humvee while he was deployed to Iraq in 2006 with the Active Army's 410th MP Company.

Paperwork for a Purple Heart, the medal awarded to those wounded in combat, should have been submitted but got lost.

Almost 20 years later, after Oaks requested his medal, the New York National Guardsmen of the 153rd Troop Command were asked to formally present Oaks with his Purple Heart.

Oaks, a Jamestown, New York native, enlisted into the active-duty Army in 2004 and was stationed at then-Fort Hood, Texas. He served in various law enforcement roles with the 110th and 410th military police companies under the 720th Military Police Battalion of the 89th Military Police Brigade.In late June 2006, Oaks deployed with the 410th to Camp Stryker in Baghdad.

On November 3 that year, the company was conducting combat operations in Abu Amer in the Wasit province of the country. Oaks was the lead gunner in a convoy when his Humvee was struck.

The force of the blast knocked him unconscious, and his skull was cracked when his head hit the Humvee's turret.Oaks was moved to another vehicle and evacuated.

"I woke up at the [troop medical clinic] at Camp Stryker. I had blood in my eyes. I couldn't hear anything. Confused, I didn't know what was going on," Oaks recalled.

Three days later, he was back on duty.

Oaks' injuries during the explosion had earned him the Purple Heart but the medal wasn't added to his military record.

Oaks waited a long time to get his military record amended and dealt with personal challenges in the meantime - namely losing his brother Todd, who joined the Army in 2003 and mentored Oaks during his time in uniform.

Todd died just months before Oaks was honorably discharged in 2008."I had to get through the battle in my mind first, and that was the roughest part," he said.

"For years, I hadn't been able to figure out the piece that was missing. I felt like I couldn't rest."

Oaks said he eventually got up enough courage to request his record to be amended.He received a letter of approval from the Army in April 2024 and a certificate was mailed to him.

"It felt like this weight was lifted off my shoulders. I mean, I could breathe again. I could think straight," Oaks said.

But the letter also told Oaks that awards and decorations such as the Purple Heart should be "presented with an appropriate degree of formality in a fitting ceremony."

The request to do just that made its way to the New York National Guard's Buffalo-based 153rd Troop Command, and a ceremony was planned at the unit's headquarters in the historic Connecticut Street Armory.

"While the award we're presenting may be late, it's no less important than if you were to receive it in Iraq in front of your brothers in arms," Col. William Snyder, the 153rd's executive officer, told Oaks before calling him to stand in front of Soldiers from the brigade and Oaks' family and friends, and pinning the medal to his collar.

"The Purple Heart is unlike any other medal we wear. It isn't sought out. It's not given for achievement, merit, or skill," Snyder said. "It is earned through great personal sacrifice and risk to one's life that few citizens in American can understand."

The Purple Heart dates to the earliest days of the United States.Gen. George Washington established the medal in 1782 during the Revolutionary War - then calling it the "Badge of Military Merit" - with the intent of recognizing courage and dedication among enlisted ranks that often went unnoticed.

The badge was awarded to just three sergeants for "singularly meritorious action," and then faded into obscurity for the 150 years after the war.

In 1932, on the 200th anniversary of Washington's birth, the U.S. War Department revived and reimagined the decoration.

The modern Purple Heart was born, featuring a profile of Washington on a heart-shaped medal, draped in royal purple and edged with gold.

Since then, it has been awarded to an estimated 1.8 million servicemembers wounded or killed in combat.

"It's just a great honor," Oaks said.

The 153rd's Soldiers lined up to shake Oaks' hand, congratulate him, and thank him following the ceremony. Being surrounded by them felt like being at home again, Oaks said.

Besides the brother he'd lost, Oaks said it was with the Soldiers that he'd found his missing piece."It was the Army - believe it or not - the Army that I'd missed most," he said.

Oaks other awards and decorations include the Combat Action Badge, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, and Overseas Service Ribbon

Media Attachments

Former U.S. Army Pfc. Justin Oaks poses for a photo next to a Humvee after being presented the Purple Heart medal during a ceremony in the historic Connecticut Street Armory in Buffalo Buffalo, N.Y., May 17, 2025. The medal was presented nearly 20 years after Oaks was wounded in combat in Iraq, serving as the gunner in a Humvee like the one he stood in front of. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. Avery Schneider)

Former U.S. Army Pfc. Justin Oaks (right) is presented the Purple Heart medal by Col. William Snyder, an engineer officer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 153rd Troop Command Brigade, 53rd Troop Command, New York Army National Guard during a ceremony in Buffalo, N.Y., May 17, 2025. The medal was presented nearly 20 years after Oaks was wounded in combat in Iraq. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. Avery Schneider)

Former U.S. Army Pfc. Justin Oaks poses for a photo with family and friends after being presented the Purple Heart medal during a ceremony in the historic Connecticut Street Armory in Buffalo Buffalo, N.Y., May 17, 2025. The medal was presented nearly 20 years after Oaks was wounded in combat in Iraq. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. Avery Schneider)

WS
William
S.
Copyright © 2025 Merit Pages, Inc. • All Rights Reserved. • Terms of Service • Privacy Policy • Opt Out