On Tuesday morning, Harvey Drahos got the news he's waited almost eight decades for.
In 1945, the now-100-year-old veteran was wounded in the Battle of Okinawa, suffering shrapnel wounds to his right wrist, brain damage from a major concussion, and PTSD. But a series of clerical and bureaucratic errors — from incorrect discharge papers to a 1973 fire in the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis that destroyed his records — left him without the recognition he deserved.
It took him 68 years just to get his health benefits. And though he's gotten different recognitions for his service over the years, all on display in a room in his house, he didn't have a key honor: the Purple Heart.
His attempts to secure one for his injuries have spanned decades. Even with the help of two senators, three representatives, and a myriad of organizations, each attempt went in vain.
In June, Drahos, fresh out of an aortic valve replacement surgery, told The Olympian he was ready to move on from his quest for the award. He had come to terms with the possibility that he'd never get it.
"I qualify for at least one or two Purple Hearts," he said in June. "And nothing. They just say, 'No, no, no, no.' I just practically gave it up already."
But longtime friend Karen Schoessel, who has led recent communication and advocacy efforts for Drahos, refused to let him give up on the fight. Though an attempt to secure the award with U.S. Rep. Marilyn Strickland's help earlier this year was also unsuccessful, Schoessel saw an opportunity in the power of the people.
In the weeks following The Olympian's publication of an article about his quest, Drahos's injustice started to receive national attention. That — combined with an August video by youtuber Rishi Sharma on Remember WWII with Rishi Sharma featuring Drahos — started turning the tides in the veteran's favor.
From Boy Scout troops to Department of Veterans Affairs individuals, people all over the country started reaching out to support Drahos and look into his case. Sharma, who has worked with veterans who faced similar obstacles to receiving their Purple Hearts, encouraged viewers to send emails to an Army public affairs officer — so many that the officer reached back out to Schoessel.
"(The public affairs officer) started getting bombarded — it was just a flood of emails — asking for her to do something," she said. "She got in touch with me and said 'OK, what can you do to make this stop' ... I said, 'You need to correct this long overdue wrong.'"
The public affairs officer put her on a call with the director for military records corrections almost immediately. Drahos filled out yet another set of forms over his incorrect records, and Schoessel sent them binders of information.
Pressure placed Drahos's case on the fast track. A process that usually took him 18 months and resulted in a "no" went through in seven working days. And on Tuesday morning, it was Schoessel who called Drahos to tell him the news: The Army Review Boards Agency approved his Purple Heart request.
He had only one word to say: "Wow."
"Due to the fact that all the records were lost, misplaced and burned, it's really difficult to prove that you were even there. But now that it's all finished, I am very, very happy," he said. "I'm just blessed and surprised and it's an absolute miracle."
To Drahos, the award is a personal recognition of his contributions during the war, and his changed records will preserve his legacy. He looks forward to sharing them with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, many of whom are unaware of the extent of his service.
His Purple Heart is now on its way in the mail. The first thing he plans to do when he gets it is to give it a hug, he said.
But to him, what's even more special is the support that he received along the way.
"I am so loved by so many people I am not aware of, all over the United States," he said. "People write to me, call me, encourage me. In five months I'll be 101, and to me that's extremely important, this part of my life. I really, really appreciate it."
