Hooah to all my fellow Veterans! I'm wondering how many of us members of VU are also wounded warriors? If you were injured during your wartime service, and would like to share your story, I would love to hear it! I will start it off:
I joined the Army in 2000, bct Ft. Lost in the Woods (if you were there, you get it) and AIT at APG Maryland. I was assigned to COSCOM at Ft. Bragg, 659th Maint. Co., as a 63w Wheeled Vehicle Repairer (or, as we called it, "high speed parts changers" lol!).
I was deployed twice, first to K2 FOB Uzbekistan (OEF) and then to Seitz Annex, Baghdad Iraq (OIF). Only 4 months into my 2nd deployment, I was tasked with putting together a small convoy to retrieve some broken down HMMV's. We were targeted for attack by a solo insurgent who had daisy-chained a row of explosives under the already damaged road. Luckily he set off the remote detonation a little early, because otherwise we would have taken more casualties. As it was, myself and two of my soldiers were severely injured. This was on 09/09/2004. I spent the next two years going through 17 surgeries, my leg was amputated above the knee, and I had to relearn how to walk again using a prosthetic c-leg. I was awarded a Purple Heart and was the first female from COSCOM to receive the Combat Action Badge.
I am no longer in the Army, though I would give anything to still be in Uniform. Now my fight is against my own PTSD, for better Veterans healthcare and supporting the Troops still serving, as well as advocating for our right to Vape! I hope if you were injured while serving in any branch of the military, whether your wounds be visible or not, that you are able to share your story here. I have learned that just telling your wartime experience has a healing effect.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, AND WELCOME HOME BROTHERS & SISTERS!
I joined the Army in 2000, bct Ft. Lost in the Woods (if you were there, you get it) and AIT at APG Maryland. I was assigned to COSCOM at Ft. Bragg, 659th Maint. Co., as a 63w Wheeled Vehicle Repairer (or, as we called it, "high speed parts changers" lol!).
I was deployed twice, first to K2 FOB Uzbekistan (OEF) and then to Seitz Annex, Baghdad Iraq (OIF). Only 4 months into my 2nd deployment, I was tasked with putting together a small convoy to retrieve some broken down HMMV's. We were targeted for attack by a solo insurgent who had daisy-chained a row of explosives under the already damaged road. Luckily he set off the remote detonation a little early, because otherwise we would have taken more casualties. As it was, myself and two of my soldiers were severely injured. This was on 09/09/2004. I spent the next two years going through 17 surgeries, my leg was amputated above the knee, and I had to relearn how to walk again using a prosthetic c-leg. I was awarded a Purple Heart and was the first female from COSCOM to receive the Combat Action Badge.
I am no longer in the Army, though I would give anything to still be in Uniform. Now my fight is against my own PTSD, for better Veterans healthcare and supporting the Troops still serving, as well as advocating for our right to Vape! I hope if you were injured while serving in any branch of the military, whether your wounds be visible or not, that you are able to share your story here. I have learned that just telling your wartime experience has a healing effect.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, AND WELCOME HOME BROTHERS & SISTERS!
) Not to mention minor scars left by a couple of frag grenades. Nevertheless I miss those days. I enlisted because I had nothing to hold on to as a civilian. I graduated from university but couldn't find a decent job. But military service made me feel myself useful, I knew I was doing something important. Moreover it is so much easier to engage in combat when you've got nothing to lose 