Wheaton salutes its Medal of Honor hero

As Army Staff Sgt. Robert Miller was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor at the White House on Wednesday, he was being remembered in his native Wheaton as “a true role model whose memory always will be cherished.

“Our Sgt. Miller is a valiant, courageous hero in the truest, most classic sense, Wheaton Mayor Michael Gresk said during a memorial ceremony outside St. Michael Parish School.

Miller, who graduated from the Wheaton school in 1998, was killed Jan. 25, 2008, during a firefight with Taliban forces near a border town in northeast Afghanistan. The 24-year-old gave his life to save his team of seven soldiers and 15 Afghan troops.

U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam said Miller is an inspiration because he was willing to lay down his life for his friends.

“Robbie has invited us to stand up and to be counted among those who honor freedom and honor liberty, Roskam said, “and honor these things that we have been entrusted to as Americans.

In recognition of President Barack Obama presenting the Medal of Honor the nation's highest military honor to Miller's family Wednesday, St. Michael Catholic Church hosted an all-school Mass.

“We're very proud to honor his memory today, said Councilman Howard Levine, who was among several dignitaries at the Mass. “I think it's important that we recognize his sacrifice and the sacrifice of his family.

After the service, about a hundred people gathered for the ceremony in the Robert J. Miller Memorial Plaza at the corner of Willow and Wheaton avenues. They quietly watched as an American flag was raised to half staff on a new flagpole.

“We owe Robert Miller, political commentator Dan Proft told the audience. “And we owe him more than this memorial Mass and remembering him and his heroism.

“We owe him in the way that we conduct our lives, Proft said.

Since the Medal of Honor was created in 1861, fewer than 3,500 recipients have earned the award. The fact Miller is counted among them is a testament to the heroism that he displayed on the battlefield, Proft said.

“These God-given freedoms that are written in paper have always been hard won in practice, and that's something that we cannot forget, he said

From now on, Proft said, he no longer is going to describe Wheaton as the city where sports figures Kent Graham and Chuck Long once played football.

“From this day forward, when people ask me where I'm from, I am going to say, ‘I'm from Wheaton,' Proft said. “I'm going to say, ‘It's the hometown of Robert Miller, a Medal of Honor recipient.'