Korean War vet awarded with 2 Purple Hearts


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OGDEN -- A Utah Marine got a special surprise Saturday, decades after serving the U.S. in the Korean War.

Robert Wahlen waited 60 years to get a Purple Heart, and his dream finally came true.

Sen. Orrin Hatch and Utah Congressman Rob Bishop had the honor of presenting Wahlen with not just one, but two Purple Hearts at a special ceremony at the George Wahlen Veteran's Home in Ogden Saturday.

"I'm very proud of you, and we're honored to be able to pin these Purple Hearts on you," Hatch said.

Wahlen fought with the U.S. Marines and was wounded twice in the Korean War of 1950.

Robert Wahlen
Robert Wahlen

Those close to him say he served honorably for his country.

Wahlen was overcome by the honor. "This is the first time anybody has done this for me," he said.

Wahlen is the cousin of the late Medal of Honor recipient, George Wahlen.

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