LCPL Louis Plume awarded Purple Heart after surviving IED attack

America remembered this week the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and the thousands of innocent lives that were lost in New York City, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania. They also were reminded of the men and women that are fighting for freedom around the world, and put their lives in harm?s way on a daily basis. Rogers City Area Schools Board of Education president Mike Marx, before the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of Monday?s school board meeting, asked everyone in attendance to ?keep in your thoughts? those serving overseas. The school district also observed a moment of silence Monday morning to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the day. The daily dangers encountered in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan became all too clear for a local Marine who was involved in an injury-sustaining incident in Iraq.

CORPORAL LOUIS A. PLUME of Rogers City, the son of Mark and Yvonne Plume, survived a deadly blast from improvised explosive devices while conducting combat operations in the Al Anbar Province. Plume was one of three Marines with the Combat Logistics Battalion 5, 1st Marine Logistics Group, awarded Purple Hearts last month. ?Everything can change in the blink of an eye,? said Plume, 24, a machine gunner with Security Company, CLB-5. The humvee Plume and his fellow Marines were riding in suffered three blasts in the span of 30 minutes while traveling outside of Fallujah. ?After the first (IED) I checked myself. No bleeding?nothing. Ears hurt, ears ringing?good to go. Let?s keep going,? he said, describing his reaction to the explosion. Plume continued with his mission, while seeking to positively identify the insurgents responsible for the attack. The impact of the IEDs left him with difficulty hearing and seeing. Since the attack, he has developed migraines, as well as short-term memory loss. ?(The doctors) said if I were to sustain another IED blast, I could end up brain dead,? said Plume, who plans on co-owning a tree stump grinding business with his father when his enlistment is complete in January.

LIKE MANY other service members, the Rogers City native had the opportunity to leave after being injured. ?I?d rather stay here and see the rest of my Marines go home,? said Plume, who is scheduled to return with his Camp Pendleton-based unit in September, after which he will no longer be considered deployable as a result of his injuries. The IED contained a 7.62-millimeter round from an AK-47 assault rifle. The shrapnel struck his radio preventing further injury. With more than 2,000 U.S. service members having died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, there is a certain appreciation for life in the mind-set of those who have walked away from IED encounters with minor injuries. ?I definitely know how close I came to dying. I?m still alive to talk about it,? said Plume, who paused before quietly adding that there are so many military personnel who

did not get the chance. Many Marines humbly reject being called heroes and believe they are living up to what the Marine Corp expects of them. ?It?s part of being a Marine?(it?s) second nature to do what (we) have to do.?

Plume, who is expected to be home on leave at the end of the month, was featured on the front page of the September 29, 2005 Advance with a group of students from Rogers City Elementary School. Plume proudly stood next to students holding a handmade American flag. The stars and stripes on the flag were created by the students pressing their hands in paint and then placing it on a bed sheet.

Barb Ellenberger?s class made the flag and sent it to Iraq. Plume was returning the favor and brought the flag back to Rogers City, after his comrades had signed it. The flag was on display for nearly the entire 2005-06 school year.

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