Marine gets Purple Heart for concussion | News

CANTON- (WXIA) It's been six years since retired Marine Sgt. Monroe Seigle ran over a bomb while serving in Iraq. He got a concussion that day, but wasn't eligible for a Purple Heart under the rules of the time because he wasn't knocked out by the blast. The Department of Defense awards the honor to soldiers who are wounded or killed during wartime. Friends and fellow service members pushed for him to apply for it, and he got it.

"I'm not a hero, I am just a marine who was out there just like every other marine, and I happened to run over an IED," Seigle said. "Head injuries have been a very common theme in this war, therefore I think it's appropriate they finally realized even though there wasn't any sort of piercing of the body by any foreign object, injuries did occur."

Seigle said he has mixed emotions about getting the Purple Heart, because he believes many other veterans deserve awards for which they never applied. He said the Department of Defense makes it hard on many veterans to apply for and receive benefits and awards.

"To my last dying breath, if I ever do anything to help anybody, it will be to fight for other veterans," Seigle said. "Stand up for what is yours. You're entitled to something; you deserve it, go out and get it."