Purple Heart recipient among band members playing at Du Quoin State Fair | Community Spirit

WEST FRANKFORT, IL (KFVS) - A Purple Heart recipient from Southern Illinois will be among the band members playing during a major grandstand act at the Du Quoin State Fair.

Charles Reed of West Frankfort suffered major injuries from a roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan that destroyed the Humvee he was riding in three years ago.

But the Army National Guardsman fought to survive and when doctors overseeing his recovery asked him what he wanted to re-learn first, he said, “Bring me my guitar.”

Reed, 32, had played for the West Frankfort-based band, “Against the Tide,” before his Guard unit was deployed to Afghanistan and as he recovered from the injuries he had sustained in war, being a part of that band again was on the forefront of his mind.

“I almost lost my right arm in the blast, but doctors were able to save it,” Reed said. “When physical therapy started, doctors asked me, what do you want to be able to do with your right arm? I said, play music and ride Harleys.”

Today, the 1998 graduate of Frankfort Community High School is doing both. On Sept. 1, at the Du Quoin State Fair, he will join other members of Against the Tide as they open for two major rock bands, “Default” and “Saving Abel.”

“We are really pumped about opening for these bands,” Reed said. “They are both bands we have really looked up to.”

Tickets for the concert are $25 each. To reach the Du Quoin State Fair ticket office, call 618-542-1535.

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