MIFFLINBURG -- Sixty-four years after a chunk of Nazi shrapnel pierced his right arm, World War II veteran Robert Hyle finally has a Purple Heart.
Hyle, 82, received the medal on Memorial Day, at a surprise ceremony in New Berlin. His wife, Marilyn, and a family friend duped him into thinking her son was the one being honored. Hyle stood, camera in hand, ready to snap some photos. But when he heard his own name called, he was floored.
"It was a surprise," Hyle modestly admitted Wednesday.
The truth is that after a lifetime of waiting, the Mifflinburg resident didn't think he'd ever get his Purple Heart.
"After all that time, I didn't think it was going to happen," he said.
Hyle's service record reads like a history textbook. He fought at Normandy, at Nuremberg, in Luxembourg -- his outfit's artillery helping drive the Nazis deeper and deeper into Germany. Hyle was calling in trajectory orders at the Battle of the Bulge, when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his right arm.
"I looked down and saw there was some blood," he said, though he explained he didn't at first realize he'd been hit.
The then-18-year-old was laid-up for a month at a hospital in Belgium. Then, as soon as his wound had healed, Hyle rejoined his men for the conclusion of the war.
The Purple Heart didn't breech his thoughts much, Hyle said, except when he read about other men receiving similar awards.
But in those moments, he wondered why the Army had overlooked him.
"Wounded in Germany," his service sheet read, right there in black and white.
For more than a half century, though, his twin entry and exit wound scars were all Hyle had to show for his bravery.
After All These Years...'
Hyle family friend Shirley Olive had a favor to call in at the New Berlin American Legion. She'd embroidered a high-ranking member's hat, and he was grateful enough to ask her if there was anything he could do in return.
"I do have one thing you could do for me," she'd told him. Could he find a way to get Robert Hyle the Purple Heart he's deserved since 1945?
As it turns out, he could.
"It was very emotional when they gave it to him," Olive said.
"His family was crowding around, it was touching. After all these years to see one of our World War II veterans honored, it was a great moment."
It's all still sinking in for Hyle, who wondered Wednesday how far his good luck would take him.
"Last weekend, I was the best man at my granddaughter's wedding. This weekend I got the Purple Heart," he said. "What's next?"
n E-mail comments to dgessel@dailyitem.com.
News
Related Photos
-
Seth Hoover/The Daily Item
-
Seth Hoover/The Daily Item
-
Seth Hoover/The Daily Item
-
Seth Hoover/The Daily Item
-
Seth Hoover/The Daily Item
Discussion
Robert Hyle waited 64 years for Purple Heart
- News
-
-
Lewisburg schools face cuts in personnel, programs
Superintendent Mark DiRocco told the Lewisburg school board Thursday night that a proposed block grant system of school budget funding will run the district short of cash that will have to be made up through personnel and program cuts.
-
Mom: Keller's response left her cold
Like many people, Elise Nicol is concerned about Marcellus Shale and the industry's effects on Pennsylvania's environment. The Lewisburg mother of two cares about it enough that she sent an email to state Rep. Fred Keller, R-85 of Kreamer, asking him to oppose House Bill 1950, which passed the General Assembly on Wednesday.
-
Point Township authority concerned by sewer plant violations
Point Township Sewer Authority members Thursday night expressed concerns about a Feb. 3 letter sent to the Northumberland Sewer Authority by the state's Department of Environmental Protection saying that the borough authority has violated the Clean Streams Act.
-
Persing truck fee idea stalls
While Pennsylvania has passed legislation allowing communities to collect impact fees in 35 counties, Northumberland County is not one of them, and business leaders and lawmakers do not think Sunbury Mayor David Persing's plan to try to do his own version of an impact fee will pass muster.
-
Barber draws a crowd
The talk can be spirited at times, ranging from hunting to sports to home repairs. "You hear all kinds of stories," Gene Koehler, of Riverside, said Thursday as he waited for a haircut at The Masters barbershop, 209 Mill St.
-
State board approves table games at Valley Forge casino
VALLEY FORGE — A casino resort scheduled to open this spring in the Philadelphia suburb of Valley Forge has been approved for table games.
-
Doctors telling more adults: Get out and exercise
ATLANTA — A new study shows more and more U.S. adults are being told by their doctor to get off their duffs and exercise. A government survey found nearly 33 percent of adults who saw a doctor in the previous year said they were told to exercise. That was up from about 23 percent in 2000.
-
Former Northumberland County judge and three others die in Florida crash
EVERGLADES CITY, Fla. -- A former Northumberland County judge was one of four people killed Wednesday afternoon when their car collided with a van at an intersection, according to the Naples News. The victims were identified as James J. Rosini, 66, William J. Rosini, 68, Patricia C. Rosini, 65, all of Coal Township, Pa., and Deborah A. Korbich, 59, of Elysburg, Pa.
-
Warden demotes four bosses
SUNBURY -- Northumberland County Prison Warden Roy Johnson was able to trim about $135,000 in expenses by demoting four supervisors. He said Wednesday that he found a way to cut costs without laying off any staff. "I cut out 120 hours of supervisors' pay each week, but I need to fill the correction officer positions," Johnson said.
-
DJ pumps up audience
Every Tuesday evening, Richard Grogg can be found spinning tunes at possibly the most well-attended dance in Snyder County. A resident at the Selinsgrove Center since 1988, the 57-year-old said the thing he likes most about selecting and playing music is "making people happy." "Some people come up and ask for requests," he said.
-
Agency closes adult center
PENNS CREEK -- Union and Snyder County caregivers have had to look farther and wider for another program that can offer respite because the Agency on Aging can no longer afford to provide the service. The adult daily living center at the Penns Creek Adult Resource Center was a helpful program each week to about eight adults from the area dealing with Alzheimer's and dementia. But it closed Dec. 30.
-
New Berlin pushes to acquire school
NEW BERLIN -- The Borough Council sold the property where the New Berlin Elementary School is to the precursor of the Mifflinburg Area School District for $1 back in 1950. It was deeded to the district for construction of a school.
- More News Headlines
-
Lewisburg schools face cuts in personnel, programs
