On July 5, 2011, S. Vaughan Wilson III, was awarded his purple heart for a traumatic brain injury received in 2005 while serving with 173rd Airborne in Afghanistan. As more is learned about traumatic brain injuries and how they can severely injure a servicemember, the United States Army has adopted modified criteria for purple heart qualifications.
Samuel Vaughan Wilson III, a Critical Care Paramedic, transitioned to active duty as a medic in the United States Army after September 11th. Following Airborne training and a brief assignment with the 75th Ranger Regiment, Wilson was assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vicenza, Italy – there serving as a rifle platoon medic in Bravo Company, 508th Infantry (the “Red Devils”). He deployed in February, 2005 to Afghanistan and participated in a full spectrum of operations including air assaults, mounted/dismounted combat patrols, and humanitarian assistance missions, serving in Paktika, Oruzgun, Kandahar, and Ghazni provinces during his twelve month assignment. While in Afghanistan, Wilson was decorated for valor for saving the lives of eight seriously wounded coalition soldiers while under enemy fire. Further, he was awarded the Combat Medical Badge. Additionally, the French Republic recognized him for work with French Special Forces in Afghanistan and awarded him the Medaille de la Defense Nationale, Bronze.
Wilson was wounded on 18 October, 2005 in the Shah Wali Koht valley during an IED-initiated ambush. Though unrecognized at the time, he suffered a moderate Traumatic Brain Injury with a concussion, along with lacerations from the event. In late 2006, his deployment now over and suffering from the untreated and cumulative effects of his traumatic brain injury, Wilson was discharged from the Army, ending ten years of active and reserve service to his country.
Currently living in Charlottesville, Virginia and happily married to Joy Jennifer Jaswinski, he and Joy are the proud parents of two daughters with a son a mere month away from delivery. Wilson is a full-time father – and excited about his upcoming extra duties.
Nearly six years after his injury and five years after discharge from the Army, today marks the sunset on a long process for personal and professional closure. Wilson is extremely grateful that amid a national commitment in three theaters of operation, more than a quarter of a million troops deployed worldwide, despite the paperwork, the beaurecratic hassle, the fog of the battlefield, the confusion of medical care and ongoing treatment, his comrades and the Army as a whole are proving beyond all doubt that they still take care of their own. They have his gratitude, and he – at last – has his peace.