Robert Burr is an 87-year-old Delaware resident who served in the Korean War.

Just before joining the U.S. Army in 1951, Burr was quarreling with his girlfriend and didn't like his job, he said. He had intended to join the U.S. Air Force, he said, but the recruiting officer told him the Air Force’s quota had been met.

“But if I joined the Army, I could get training in any specialty I wanted,” he recalled the officer telling him. “I foolishly believed him.”

Burr took infantry basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, before being sent to Korea with the 2nd Infantry Division, 38th Infantry Regiment.

He was a gunner on the 57 Recoilless -- a 45-pound, 5-foot-long gun that shot 6-pound projectiles.

“When you fired it, you had better be ready to run, as everyone would direct their fire on your position” Burr said.

Burr volunteered for the front lines, he said.

“If you were front line, you got four points per month,” he said. “And it took 36 points to rotate out and go home.”

He was involved in two fierce battles in 1951 -- Bloody Ridge, where he became a squad leader after his leader was wounded, and Heartbreak Ridge, where he was wounded in October. Many of his comrades had fallen, and only a handful remained when a mortar shell landed behind him, showering him with shrapnel.

Burr returned to Fort Knox and was assigned as a field first sergeant in a training company. He later attended leadership school and graduated at the top of his class. He continued serving in the Army as an infantry-tactics instructor until 1954, training young soldiers. He retired as a master sergeant.

His decorations include the Combat Infantry Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Medal, the Good Conduct Ribbon and the Purple Heart.

Burr was born in Clinton Township in Columbus and lived there until he was 14. He then moved to Pataskala and graduated from then Pataskala High School in 1950 and went on to attend Bliss Business College in Columbus.

By the way, after his military career, he ended up marrying the girl with whom he was quarreling and returned to the job he didn't like, having retired there after 34 years.

His wife died, and he later married Barbara. He has three children, two having died.

Burr returned to Korea in September 2001 on the week of 9/11. His stay lasted much longer than intended because no one was permitted to fly out, he said.

This podcast was produced by Scott Hummel, ThisWeek assistant managing editor, digital.