Mason High grad earns Purple Heart, aspires to attend MSU

For The State News

Pinned on the left chest of Pfc. Matthew Brady's uniform is the Purple Heart.

The Purple Heart is the country's oldest military decoration. Brady shrugs off the magnitude of the award, even though it was his bravery in the face of a deadly attack while serving in Iraq that earned him the honor.

"It's one of those medals that you go over (to Iraq) not wanting to get," Brady said. "But when you get it, it's an honor."

Brady, a Mason High School graduate, hopes to hang his camouflage uniform in a closet and blend in with other MSU students this fall.

The 19-year-old said he would welcome the transition from fearing for his life on the front lines to worrying about a midterm in a cramped dorm room.

Four months ago, in dusty military boots faded by dirt and mud, Brady patrolled a neighborhood south of Baghdad, which the soldiers referred to as "the Triangle of Death."

While on a two-week leave in February, he met with MSU's Office of Admissions in hopes of trading combat for college life. Admissions officials declined to release information on Brady's application status for privacy reasons.

Eleven days later, Brady flew from a military base in Atlanta to Germany and back to the uncertainties of Iraq. For now, Brady is back on patrol and likely won't be back to the United States until August.

While Brady looks forward to stomaching exams and cafeteria food, he knows another hero's welcome and return to his hometown is not a sure thing.

"Over there (in Iraq), every day you are in the mind-set of, 'Is today my day? Is today when my luck runs out?'" he said.

Brady became a war hero in many eyes on the morning of Nov. 16, when enemy soldiers attacked his convoy.

One of the enemy soldiers fired a shoulder-mounted, rocket-propelled grenade launcher at the convoy's Humvee.

The grenade exploded about 10 feet away from Brady, according to a story in the Lansing State Journal.

Doctors later told Brady he would have died had it landed two inches closer.

Brady suffered a concussion, brain swelling, 70 percent hearing loss and nearly 40 percent loss of eyesight.

Despite his hopes to become a student, Brady felt it was important to re-enlist after his experience.

"I felt like if I didn't go back (to Iraq), I would have abandoned the guys that I trained with and I fought with, and they need me," Brady said.

The hardest part about his decision to re-enlist was knowing his mother, Cindy, would have to continue to worry.

"When I first came home for my two weeks, I was a mess," Brady said. "My first night, I spent almost the entire night crying in my mom's arms."

Brady wants to major in history and earn a teaching certificate at MSU.

If he is admitted, he will follow in the footsteps of his mother and aunt, who earned doctorate degrees from MSU.

Mason Mayor Leon Clark named Feb. 19, the day Brady returned to Iraq, "Pfc. Matthew Brady Day" in the city.

"I'm pleased and proud he is from the city of Mason, and particularly happy that we had the opportunity to honor him in this small way," Clark said.