The son of a former Chandler mayor is recuperating at Naval Medical Center San Diego after getting wounded in Iraq.
Sgt. Darren Dugan, 24, a Hamilton High School graduate, suffered shrapnel wounds to his thigh and heel after a land mine exploded while he and four other Marines were on patrol this month in Anbar province.
Dugan's father, Richard Dugan, who served on the Chandler City Council for four years before serving as mayor from 1988 to 1990, said his son called him from a field hospital July 11.
"He said he was going to have stitches," the elder Dugan said Tuesday.
The former mayor said his son tried to downplay the injuries to alleviate his parents' worries.
"He was very, very lucky," said Claudia Dugan, Darren's mother. "A lot of the soldiers there at the Naval Center were not very lucky."
She said he is expected to fully recover.
Richard Dugan, 60, had owned a 25-acre dairy farm since 1976 at Dobson and Germann roads, which in recent years became known for giving hands-on public tours popular with children.
The tours ended in 2006 and he sold the dairy in September.
Richard Dugan's father began farming in Chandler in 1962 after moving from Wisconsin. The family also has dairies in Casa Grande.
Claudia Dugan said her son enlisted about 31/2 years ago.
He served in Okinawa and wanted to go to Iraq, Richard Dugan said.
"I wanted to hit him over the head," he said.
A Stars and Stripes story published Sunday said Darren Dugan was the leader of a five-man team from the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion's CompanyA.
Three other Marines were wounded in the explosion.
