Media contact: Jeff Schrade (202)224-9093 

(Washington, DC) U.S. Senator Larry Craig met with Army Specialist Andrew Pike at Walter Reed Army Hospital on Monday and presented him with the Purple Heart.

"The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the President of the United States to those members of the Armed Forces who are wounded in a theater of combat," said Sen. Larry Craig, who serves as the Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. 

Andrew Pike has been at Walter Reed for the past month, recuperating from injuries sustained in Iraq. In late March he was on foot patrol with his unit in Baghdad when he was hit by a sniper's bullet which entered his torso just below his protective vest. Pike's spinal cord is intact, but he has not regained any sensation in the lower extremities.

"Andrew is one of America's heroes. I am proud of him for fighting for his country, and for fighting to recover from his injuries. He is a remarkable young man with a great spirit and he has a great family supporting him," Craig said.

During his stay at Walter Reed, Andrew's brother Daniel, age 24, a member of the U.S. Navy, was reassigned to be at his bedside, and his parents, Brian and Robin Pike, flew in from Idaho to be there to assist their son. Sen. Craig made the presentation at the request of Andrew's family.

The Pike family left Washington, DC, today (Tuesday) on a military medical transport plane headed to Seattle. There Andrew will receive more medical treatment at the Veterans Affairs facility at Puget Sound.

Andrew and his family credit an Army surgeon, Captain Chris Yamamoto, for saving his life.

"It was unusual for a surgeon to be there, but he apparently likes to go on patrol. He saved my son's life," said Brian Pike, Andrew's father.

Andrew grew up in Kimberly, Idaho, and graduated from Kimberly High School in 2004. After a semester at the Southern Idaho College in Twin Falls, he joined the Army and was soon a member of the 82nd Airborne, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

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