MADISON, Neb.— After decades, one Nebraska man is finally receiving the Purple Heart he earned in 1969.

Ray Krings was stationed in Saigon when his camp was surprise-attacked in the night by North Vietnamese soldiers.

“Ray then heard something thrown into his bunker, followed by the brightest light you could imagine and immense heat,” Ray’s 15th grandchild Ava Bettenhausen said. “He was thrown from his stomach to his back as the roof of his bunker was set ablaze. The impact caused Ray to be pinned under rubble alongside two other comrades.”

Ray was taken underground to receive immediate care and stayed in a Saigon hospital before being transferred to Japan, where he had the first of his amputations.

He earned the Purple Heart, but never actually received it. Until now. On Tuesday, Ray and his family gathered at Arbor Care Centers in Madison to watch Governor Pillen give Ray his overdue award.

“He definitely deserved that proper presentation when he was 20 years old, but since he didn’t get that, it was very unfair to him. It was very fulfilling for us to watch him get what he deserved,” Bettenhausen said.

Most of his family was in the audience, including his wife Joyce, who was waiting for him to get back from service in 1969.

“They had seven children, all of us grandkids, there’s 25 of us,” Bettenhausen said. “We just know grandpa, like that’s our grandpa, we’ve always been proud of what he did for us."

Growing up, his grandchildren say they always thought their family was like all others, but slowly realized that the man they call grandpa is truly a hero.

“The first thing I always resort to is, my grandpa doesn't have legs. It’s not anything big, but everything is always like that’s a big deal. You know, being only 20 when he lost his legs, that’s only two years older than I am. I could never imagine being able to adapt to something like that,” Bettenhausen said.