Post Falls Soldier Gets Purple Heart

George Stratton III shakes the hand of his father, George Stratton Jr., after receiving the Purple Heart from Army Brig. Gen. Erik Peterson at his father’s home in Post Falls on Wednesday. He was injured during a shooting rampage at Fort Hood in 2009. (SR photo: Kathy Plonka)

A U.S. Army general traveled from North Carolina on Wednesday to pin the Purple Heart on the chest of a young Post Falls man still struggling with the effects of the deadliest mass shooting this nation has seen on a military base. “It’s a long time coming. It’s a step in the right direction,” said George Stratton Jr., father of George Stratton III, who was one of the more than 30 people wounded when former Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan opened fire at Fort Hood in Texas on Nov. 5, 2009. Thirteen people were killed, including Michael Grant Cahill, a 62-year-old Spokane native. Cahill, a civilian physician assistant who charged Hasan with a chair, was honored in 2011 with the Army Award for Valor, which was presented to his wife. Hasan is currently on military death row/ Alison Boggs , SR. More here .

Question: Has someone in your family received a Purple Heart?