ORANGE PARK — Army veteran Frank Herrera Jr. is not one to quit.

He served three tours in the Vietnam War facing Viet Cong and North Vietnamese troops. A part of the 93rd Engineer Battalion Company, he constructed base camps in the middle of the Mekong Delta and hid in the trenches of extreme darkness within inches of whistling bullets.

But, most of all, he survived a war that ended in the deaths of more than 58,000

Nothing about that was easy. But he took the Soldier's Creed where he vowed to never accept defeat and to always defend his country.

Never did Herrera expect that 51 years after one of the longest wars in United States history finally culminated, he'd still be fighting. But this time to obtain his Purple Heart.

His wounds, he said, will always be a reminder of why he can never stop.

"This is the way I fight."

The Purple Heart remains one of the most strictly regulated U.S. military decorations, emphasizing sacrifice through wounds or death directly caused by hostile forces. 

And Herrera maintains that he’s earned his.

The year was 1968. Herrera had been in three feet of mud trying to support the 8th Infantry Division. That was when he was hit by several mortar rounds. He said he suffered from multiple wounds and rib fractures.

But he still has yet to successfully obtain his decorated recognition for what he experienced, despite eyewitness letters, evidence, accessible documentation and a Purple Heart being awarded to his commander who was also hit.

And even with several submitted requests, obtaining eligible military medical records has been an ongoing challenge, he said.

"The board denied the Purple Heart because they need military medical evidence. And I can't get it because the VA [Veteran Affairs] won't give it to me."

In a letter that Herrera received from the Department of the Army, they stated that his initial request had been denied due to “no medical evidence to show hostile enemy forces caused his wounds.”

So, what exactly does it take to prove a veteran's experience years after it occurred?

County Veterans Service Officer Paulo Osorio said challenges similar to Herrera's are surprisingly common, especially when trying to navigate the process and locate documentation decades after a veteran has served.

“Back in the day, of course, they had to scan in all those records and a lot of the time those records did not get scanned in properly,” Osorio said. “So, a lot of the information that the veteran quotes [were] not documented or is not available.”

It also doesn't help that after the National Records Personnel Center Fire in 1971 an estimated 16 to 18 million U.S. military personnel records were destroyed.

Like Herrera, veterans are often left to reconstruct their history through alternative documents. Like, witness statements, newspaper clippings, situation reports and personal narratives.

But even then, Osorio said it's ultimately the Army's decision on what qualifies.

"You can take all that information and evidence that they have to the board of appeals and in front of a judge. And the judge, he or she, will make a determination as to whether or not they will accept it."

Osorio said there have even been some veterans who've had to take their cases to the Supreme Court.

"On their own it's very difficult. Sometimes we don't know what resources are out there. Our office specializes in looking for records in such cases. Or at least finding the resources and pointing the veterans to the right location."

Herrera said he's challenged the denial multiple times. continued to submit documentation and contacted his legislative officials, but to no avail.

After retiring in 1986 as a sergeant first class, Herrera volunteered with the Veteran's Administration Mental Health Group and the Vet-to-Vet Ministry. While he finally got his Bronze Star Medal in 2010, he hopes finally getting a Purple Heart will become a reality in his lifetime. 

He's also added cancer to his list of battles. But, although fate would have him give up, he says he's a fighter in more ways than one. Because that's just the way it is.

 "They told me without the evidence, it's the Army's integrity. [What] about me?"