DETROIT – Although Bradley Buckland, 22, is still in the intensive care unit at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, he is slowly showing signs of improvement, his grandfather reported Monday.

“Yesterday he ate Jello,” William “T-Bob” Buckland of Newport said Monday. “I talked to him on the phone Sunday morning, and he sounded strong and upbeat and said he wanted to be home for Christmas.”

Bradley Buckland of Detroit, who is in the U.S. Army and is based in Texas, was shot by a sniper on Saturday, Oct. 20, airlifted to Germany and underwent more than six hours of surgery. The sniper’s shots – there may have been two bullets – smashed through Bradley’s hip, went through his large intestine, small intestine and bowels, and then exited through his stomach, according to his family.

He was then flown in a medically induced coma to Walter Reed, where his parents, Greg and Pam Buckland, and his wife, Jennifer, all of Detroit, were waiting for him.

“When he woke up, he didn’t know where he was,” William Buckland said. “But he did remember being shot as he stood on a roof on patrol. He was in a little village just outside Baghdad. He also remembers his two buddies getting him down off that roof.” He was the only soldier injured in the attack, his grandfather said.

Buckland said his grandson thought he was still in Iraq when he first awoke and couldn’t figure out how he could be looking at his father. Buckland said his son and daughter-in-law will remain with their son one more week, then return to Detroit. Bradley Buckland’s wife will remain at his side.

In his conversation with his grandfather Sunday morning, Bradley Buckland talked about coming home and getting the Purple Heart medal in the future.

William Buckland said his grandson would love to receive get-well cards. His address is Bradley Buckland, Room 6812, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 6900 Georgia Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20307.

Also, the Newport Fire and Rescue Department has set up an account at Merrill Bank to accept donations for the family, said Fire Chief Fred Hickey. Greg Buckland has been a member of the department for more than 20 years. It is also his son’s dream to become a firefighter.