Cuyahoga Falls -- An overdue honor was bestowed on a Fallsite Jan. 20 on a bitterly cold night far removed from the scorching sands where it was earned.

Army Sgt. Jeremy C. McIntire, 28, received a Purple Heart in a ceremony at the Charles Faust American Legion Post #281. A Purple Heart is awarded to a member of the armed forces who is injured or killed in combat. McIntire earned his decoration in the deserts of Iraq.

Photo: Sgt. Jeremy C. McIntire, right, on his Purple Heart are, from left, Laura Pechaitis, constituent services liaison for U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown’s office; Cuyahoga Falls Mayor Don L. Robart; proud parents Debbie and Tom McIntire; and Jeremy’s wife and daughter, Claire and Lorelai.

"I can describe it for you like I was there right now," McIntire says, "The sand. The screaming. Training can only give you an idea of what the reality of war is like. But nothing prepares you for when that first bullet whizzes by your head or that first IED (improvised explosive device) goes off. There is no way to prepare for some of the things you see over there. And no way to forget them, either."

At Jeremy's request, his father, Tom McIntire, a Vietnam veteran and fellow member of the Faust Post, pinned the decoration on his uniform; it hangs on the left side of Jeremy's coat above his heart. The emotional ceremony was witnessed by family, friends and fellow veterans from as far away as Canada as well as Mayor Don L. Robart, who congratulated McIntire on the city's behalf.

"We welcome you home with a mixture of pride and relief," Robart said.

Jeremy's mother, Debbie, agreed, saying, "While the phone call (about Jeremy's injury) was scary, I'd rather get that than see someone coming up the driveway."

Laura Pechaitis, constituent services liaison for U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown's office, helped secure the honor for McIntire. The soldier says he spent a year fruitlessly trying to procure the medal, something Pechaitis was able to accomplish in three days. Pechaitis says the armed services is still learning how to track the effects of IED explosions, which differ from the combat injuries of old. Pechaitis also is pursuing a Good Conduct medal for the Fallsite.

A Purple Heart entitles recipients to enhanced medical and other benefits, and gives them higher priority in scheduling appointments.

McIntire is a lifelong Fallsite. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in November 2004 and was deployed to Iraq from April 2007 to June 2008. Assigned to Bravo company, 1st Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, McIntire served as a vehicle commander on Stryker armored vehicles. He spent the first four months of his tour in the Dora district of Baghdad and then his unit moved up north to Baqubah.

McIntire says he felt it was his duty to enlist, noting his younger brother, Jason, had deployed to Iraq as a combat engineer with the National Guard.

"My family has been very active in the VFW and the American Legion for as long as I can remember," McIntire says, adding, "We observe every Memorial Day and Veterans Day with a lot of pride. And while I could talk to the veterans all day about what they went through, I wanted the experience for myself. I felt it was my duty."

Chaos

McIntire remembers the first week of July 2007 as "the worst week of the entire deployment" for his squad. The group encountered IEDs on July 1 and 2. Four days later, McIntire's squad was performing counter-sniper patrols when it learned there was a car in the area -- possibly carrying a sniper.

"We mounted up and we were coming around a corner," McIntire says. "We were supposed to make a left to intercept the vehicle but we couldn't go left because some kind of farm equipment was blocking the road. So we went straight ahead and about 25 meters further there was a deep buried IED that blew up under our vehicle. Then chaos."

Standing in the back guard hatch performing security, McIntire struck his head on the sniper canopy, suffering a concussion, and injuring his neck and back.

"People were yelling and screaming," McIntire remembers. "When an IED hits a vehicle, every ounce of dust in that vehicle circulates in the air and you can't see in front of your face. Time seems to pass in slow motion as you're trying to get your bearings and find your buddies. The IED blew a hole through the vehicle, but no one was killed, thank God."

Five soldiers were injured in the blast. McIntire was treated for his injuries at the 28th Combat Support Hospital in the Green Zone. He was placed on limited duty for three weeks, due to his injuries, then returned to active duty.

During his deployment, McIntire's company suffered six casualties.

"I lost two buddies from my platoon on Memorial Day 2007 due to deep buried IEDs," McIntire says. "Memorial Day will never be the same again. Neither will I. You come back a changed person. And here at the post, the difference in our ages or the battlefields we fought on doesn't matter. We're all soldiers, bound together by what we've been through."

McIntire was honorably discharged from the Army in September 2008. He has joined the National Guard and is employed as a carpenter's apprentice for a company in Canton. He and his wife, Claire, recently celebrated their second wedding anniversary. They have a 4-month-old daughter, Lorelai.