Only the Medal of Honor is a higher military decoration than the last two.
McCormick, 40, of New Haven, Mason County and a current candidate for the House of Delegates, enlisted in the West Virginia National Guard while still attending Winfield High School in 1985. After graduating in 1986, he went on active duty as a cavalry scout with the 2-4 Cavalry, 24th Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Ga.Over the next 22 years, he'd crawl and claw through two wars and the ranks of the U.S. Army and Army National Guard.
His most recent tour of Iraq was his bloodiest, which led him to being nominated for the two highly distinguished service awards.
It was Easter Sunday 2004 in Baghdad, and chocolate bunnies and colored eggs were the furthest things from McCormick's mind.
Members of Muqtada al-Sadr's Madhi Militia ambushed the southwest cinderblock wall of Baghdad International Airport where American convoys would park.
"It was all that was standing between us and them," McCormick said of the 8-feet high wall. "We just happened to be right there at the wall when it happened.
"There were about 150 armed gunmen from the militia all dressed in black. Some had green headbands on. They charged toward the wall and opened fire on us. I remember one of the rockets going past our heads and exploding."
McCormick was serving as a lieutenant with the 1487th Medium Truck Co. of the Ohio National Guard. The company arrived in Kuwait in February 2004 and hauled supplies from there to Iraq.
Several members of McCormick's unit, who were driving a Humvee gun truck called the Zebra, were shot, but none died. McCormick, who manned a .50 caliber machinegun from atop the vehicle, was hit in the hand and chest by gunfire.
"They were moving with a purpose," he said of his attackers. "It was almost like it was surreal. I watched John Wayne in the movie 'The Green Berets' when the enemies attacked the camp, and it was almost like that, yet at noon Easter Sunday, of all days."
McCormick lost use of two fingers - his left pinky and ring fingers - from the enemy gunfire. Pieces of a shattered round bounced off an ammunition belt and into his hand.
"I remember looking down and seeing blood pouring out of my hand," he said. "As my hand was bleeding, I continued to fire and reload. But I could hardly move or use my hand very well."
Seconds later, McCormick encountered an even more intense moment as a round from a Russian sniper rifle blasted him in the chest. He dropped like a sack of bricks.
Luckily for McCormick, he was wearing a vest, which prevented the bullet from penetrating into his flesh.
"I looked up and saw the .50 caliber straight up in the air and a bunch of white powder," he recalled. "The bullet was so hot. I reached in and stuck my finger in there. You could feel the bullet in the vest.
"The gunner thought he'd killed me. He got me right over the heart. It was a miracle it didn't go all the way through the vest."
McCormick said the bullet was a full metal jacket, which is encased in a copper or steel alloy shell. They are usually more effective at piercing armor. McCormick kept his chest protector plate as a war memento.
As he struggled to bounce back on the truck, a fellow soldier came to check on him. But there was no time to recover, as two Iraqi insurgents approached.
The truck's .50 caliber was out of ammo. McCormick tried reloading but the blood from his cut made the brass slippery.
Out of desperation, he clutched onto a nearby flare and hurled it at the insurgents. The flare sparked a fire and caused the enemy to flee.
McCormick's story has been documented by Richard Killblane, an author and military historian. In a case study by Killblane, the author wrote that McCormick then dropped the two nearby insurgents with an M16. The soldier then reloaded the .50 caliber and resumed firing.
The bullets raining his way remained as fierce.
"Bullets were tearing through the vehicle," McCormick said. "I had one that went through the Humvee and through my pant leg that did not hit me."
The entire duration of the fight lasted about 45 minutes. McCormick's convoy had five wounded soldiers. Their attackers had 18 killed, according to Killblane.
McCormick earned his third Purple Heart for the wounds he sustained James McCormick says he's not one to boast about his military triumphs, even if it includes coming home with three Purple Hearts, two Bronze Stars with valor and nominations for the Distinguished Service Cross and Silver Star.
Only the Medal of Honor is a higher military decoration than those last two.
McCormick, 40, of New Haven, Mason County and a current candidate for the House of Delegates, enlisted in the West Virginia National Guard while still attending Winfield High School in 1985. After graduating in 1986, he went on active duty as a cavalry scout with the 2-4 Cavalry, 24th Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Ga.
Over the next 22 years, he'd crawl and claw through two wars and the ranks of the U.S. Army and Army National Guard.
His most recent tour of Iraq was his bloodiest, which led him to being nominated for the two highly distinguished service awards.
It was Easter Sunday 2004 in Baghdad, and chocolate bunnies and colored eggs were the furthest things from McCormick's mind.
Members of Muqtada al-Sadr's Madhi Militia ambushed the southwest cinderblock wall of Baghdad International Airport where American convoys would park.
"It was all that was standing between us and them," McCormick said of the 8-feet high wall. "We just happened to be right there at the wall when it happened.
"There were about 150 armed gunmen from the militia all dressed in black. Some had green headbands on. They charged toward the wall and opened fire on us. I remember one of the rockets going past our heads and exploding."
McCormick was serving as a lieutenant with the 1487th Medium Truck Co. of the Ohio National Guard. The company arrived in Kuwait in February 2004 and hauled supplies from there to Iraq.
Several members of McCormick's unit, who were driving a Humvee gun truck called the Zebra, were shot, but none died. McCormick, who manned a .50 caliber machinegun from atop the vehicle, was hit in the hand and chest by gunfire.
"They were moving with a purpose," he said of his attackers. "It was almost like it was surreal. I watched John Wayne in the movie 'The Green Berets' when the enemies attacked the camp, and it was almost like that, yet at noon Easter Sunday, of all days."
McCormick lost use of two fingers - his left pinky and ring fingers - from the enemy gunfire. Pieces of a shattered round bounced off an ammunition belt and into his hand.
"I remember looking down and seeing blood pouring out of my hand," he said. "As my hand was bleeding, I continued to fire and reload. But I could hardly move or use my hand very well."
Seconds later, McCormick encountered an even more intense moment as a round from a Russian sniper rifle blasted him in the chest. He dropped like a sack of bricks.
Luckily for McCormick, he was wearing a vest, which prevented the bullet from penetrating into his flesh.
"I looked up and saw the .50 caliber straight up in the air and a bunch of white powder," he recalled. "The bullet was so hot. I reached in and stuck my finger in there. You could feel the bullet in the vest.
"The gunner thought he'd killed me. He got me right over the heart. It was a miracle it didn't go all the way through the vest."
McCormick said the bullet was a full metal jacket, which is encased in a copper or steel alloy shell. They are usually more effective at piercing armor. McCormick kept his chest protector plate as a war memento.
As he struggled to bounce back on the truck, a fellow soldier came to check on him. But there was no time to recover, as two Iraqi insurgents approached.
The truck's .50 caliber was out of ammo. McCormick tried reloading but the blood from his cut made the brass slippery.
Out of desperation, he clutched onto a nearby flare and hurled it at the insurgents. The flare sparked a fire and caused the enemy to flee.
McCormick's story has been documented by Richard Killblane, an author and military historian. In a case study by Killblane, the author wrote that McCormick then dropped the two nearby insurgents with an M16. The soldier then reloaded the .50 caliber and resumed firing.
The bullets raining his way remained as fierce.
"Bullets were tearing through the vehicle," McCormick said. "I had one that went through the Humvee and through my pant leg that did not hit me."
The entire duration of the fight lasted about 45 minutes. McCormick's convoy had five wounded soldiers. Their attackers had 18 killed, according to Killblane.
McCormick earned his third Purple Heart for the wounds he sustained.
He was also nominated for a Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest military decoration, for his efforts that day. The award is given for extreme gallantry and soldiers who risk their life in combat with an enemy force. The criteria for earning the award is of a degree higher than those required for all other combat decorations, except for the Medal of Honor.
Notable recipients of the decoration include David Hackworth, Theodore Roosevelt, Douglas MacArthur and George Patton.
Killblane's writings paint McCormick as a cutthroat, take-no-prisoners veteran.
As a civilian, McCormick appears very amenable and strays from touting his personal war stories. He's more concerned about other veterans, Killblane said.
"He loves fighting for causes for other veterans," Killblane said. "He came back and took up helping vets with VA claims."
Killblane first heard of McCormick and his convoy's clash at Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) while conducting research on gun trucks.
"I kept hearing about a handful of truck drivers defending the wall at BIAP," Killblane said. "I collect hero stories, and I look at it as my job to get those stories out. We've got all these heroes over there, and the Army can't even identify them unless they die."
McCormick brushes off any praise directed at him. Instead he commends his comrades-in-arm.
With all of his experience in the military, including a tour of Iraq during the Desert Storm war, McCormick said his battle alongside an Ohio-based convoy was by far the most brutal.
"I went to combat with a bunch of truck drivers and saw more battle with those guys," he said. "We had three major battles at Desert Storm. Those were quick, violent and aggressive. But it was nothing like what we had to deal with here."
He added, "Thank God I had those 11 soldiers. Every one of them deserves a Silver Star. My driver was shot in the face. He had seven AK-47 rounds in his windshield. I remember looking at his face and how he kept on going. That's the way Easter Sunday went for us in 2004."
McCormick has also been recommended for a Silver Star, for a separate incident. The Silver Star is the third highest military decoration.
By the end of 2004, McCormick was assigned to the 518th Combat Gun Truck Co., nicknamed the Regulators.
On the night of the Iraqi national elections Jan. 30, 2005, insurgents attacked a convoy near McCormick's patrol of two Humvee gun trucks in Basra. The company drove to the rescue of the convoy, but they were also attacked.
The unit returned fire and a British battalion arrived to help out.
Out of roughly 50 insurgents, McCormick estimates 25 were killed and the remaining were taken prisoner.
"At one point, it was just them and us six guys and two Humvees," McCormick said. "When we took them prisoner, they were cussing and yelling at us in plain English."
After all of the bloodshed, McCormick finally got to go home in March 2005 after 13 months in the battle zone.
Home is a bit less intense, even being married with six children.
It's been somewhat of challenge for him to become reacquainted with civilian life in America.
"A lot of things changed," he said. "It was emotional. Both of my grandparents died while I was over there."
McCormick worked as a safety coordinator for Tyson Foods and was later promoted to safety director, responsible for East Coast Deli Meat Manufacturing. He is currently a safety coordinator for Brown Electric Co. He holds a business degree.
Now he's turned his attention to politics.
McCormick is running as a Republican for a House of Delegates seat in the 13th District. Some of his issues include eliminating the food and business-franchise tax and reducing the gasoline tax.
He still serves in the National Guard but plans to hang it up soon.
"It's time for this old soldier to put up his boots and leave it for the young guys and girls," McCormick said. "I love what I do, and I love my country. You've got God, country and family. Those are all neck-and-neck with me. When I think about it, I get really passionate about patriotism and loyalty to this country."