In 2012, firefighters at Engine 54, Ladder 4 in Midtown found a Purple Heart at their 9/11 memorial. None of them saw the medal’s owner leave it.
Now, thanks to Purple Hearts Reunited, the firefighters have a chance to thank Charles Wayne (C.W.) O’Brien in person. O’Brien was awarded a Purple Heart after a roadside bomb struck his vehicle in Iraq on April 5, 2007, leaving him with permanent damage, writes Ryan Sit, in the NY Daily News.
He was inspired by New York’s resilience in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 2001 and decided that he would leave the medal where it “felt right”.
