Newton Daily News: Killduff Purple Heart Recipient Honored in Trip to New York
By Dustin Teays
Published August 5, 2019
A Jasper County war veteran and Purple Heart recipient will be honored during the inaugural Purple Heart Patriot Project Mission #1, which consists of multiple events to honor Purple Heart recipients.
Robert Suesakal isn’t originally from Iowa but he would tell you Iowa is his home through and through. Suesakal is originally from Oakland, Calif., but due to life’s circumstances, he found his way into the U.S. Army in December of 1982 as an infantrymen with the 82nd Airborne.
“I was a ward of the state. So being a ward of the state (means) you’re a foster care kid and the Army was a better life. Most of the kids I grew up with are probably dead now,” Suesakal said.
Suesakal lived all over the country, as military members often do, and in 2003 was stationed at Fort Des Moines. He moved to various places but ended up settling down in Killduff after his term of service ended in December 2012.
“It is kind of out of the way. It is kind of a pain in the butt to go to Costco, but it’s home,” Suesakal said.
Suesakal’s career spanned nearly three decades. His time included multiple deployments, two in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. During one of his deployments in Iraq in 2002, his vehicle was struck by a rocket propelled grenade (RPG).
“My last deployment in Iraq my vehicle was hit,” Suesakal said. “I put in for my Purple Heart for the last action and I got it for my first action during the invasion of Iraq.”
Suesakal said the convoy was stopped and the RPG flew between his driver and the vehicle and detonated on the front of the vehicle that Suesakal was inside.
“It singed (the driver’s) hair because it went between him and the vehicle. The only thing that was left of the vehicle was my seat,” Suesakal said. “I didn’t think it was a big deal but apparently it jogged me because I’ve had headaches ever since.”
Suesakal received his Purple Heart after he had gotten out of the military. The injuries he sustained have affected him since then. The Purple Heart Patriot Project, with the help of the National Military Order of the Purple Heart, has selected him to represent Iowa during the trip.
“I’m glad to represent Iowa instead of my birth state of California because I think we as Iowans, it may look like we aren’t up to date but we are up to date” Suesakal said.
The mission of the Purple Heart Patriot Project Mission #1 is to identify Purple Heart recipients and honor them. Brian Maher, the executive director of the National Purple Heart Honor Mission, said they will be taking 33 Purple Heart recipients from 30 different states.
The itinerary for the trip it states the veterans will be staying at the historic Thayer Motel at West Point, with a schedule packed full of events to honor them and their service.
“On Aug. 7, which coincides with National Purple Heart day, we will take these Purple Heart heroes to the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor museum and have their service record memorialized in our Roll of Honor at the facility,” Maher said.
He explained the process of how veterans are selected is through the National Military Order of the Purple Heart network. The order contacted states to identify veterans who would be able to go on the trip.
The idea to design a trip like the Purple Heart Patriot Project Mission #1 came from other organizations that do something similar for veterans. Maher said trips like the Gary Sinise Foundation and Honor Flights inspired this project.
“This is the first of its kind and hopefully there will be many more to come,” Maher said.
Making a project that honors those Purple Heart heroes generates a lot of impact throughout the veteran community, not only for honoring them but also remembering those who received Purple Hearts but didn’t survive their injury or may have died afterwards.
“The impact is immeasurable ... I think from a therapeutic standpoint, individuals suffered so much when they went into battle, so being able to honor the memory of the service members they lost that are also Purple Heart recipients while they take this trip to the museum is important,” Maher said.
The trip begins Monday and runs through Thursday after the trip to the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor. The trip will be honoring Purple Heart recipients and their service and sacrifice whether they are living or deceased.
“He is a hero, he is a patriot and he is someone I will be honored to meet and I have been honored to talk to,” Maher said of Suesakal.
Suesakal added, “It is a great opportunity to represent Iowa and to be amongst the Iowans that they have on the board.”