Returning Guardsman, Potential Congressional Candidate Earns Bronze Star

This Friday, Sargeant First Class Steve Sarvi of Watertown, MN will be reunited with his wife Barb, his daughter Mary-Kate and his sons Daniel and Nathan. It's been nearly 15 months since he last saw them.

He's coming home from Iraq a hero.

Just before he left Iraq, the Army presented him the Bronze Star which is given out for "heroic or meritorious achievement or service". Not only is the Bronze Star a capstone for a very distinguished 20-year military career, but the award recognizes a strength that could serve Sarvi and Minnesota well in the coming years.

Sarvi won the Bronze Star for his work in helping build local governments in Iraq. When you think about the chaos that shakes Iraq on a daily basis, creating a local government that people believe in, participate in and actually works is a huge achievement.

As Mayor of Watertown, making government work is exactly what Sarvi was doing before he left for Iraq. As he returns, he's setting his sights higher. This war hero's goal is to make the US Government work better. Sarvi is considering a run for Congress against another military man, Representative John Kline of Minnesota's second congressional district.

On his website, Sarvi hints at why he's contemplating running against Rep. Kline.
"While I am troubled by the direction our country has taken in recent years, both in foreign and domestic policy, I remain optimistic that the great experiment known as America will only continue to flourish. As a society we must rise to that age-old challenge to make our future better than our past".

Unlike Rep. Kline, Sarvi is a Democrat. He writes
"I appreciate the willingness of Democrats to embrace the things that bind us together, rather than focus on that which sets us apart".

Sarvi certainly knows the pain of being apart. For the last 15 months Sarvi has been separated from his family as part of the longest continuously deployed National Guard unit in Iraq. As he returns it's good to hear that he wants America to be reunited as well.

You can read and/or listen to an interview with Sarvi here.