Army Capt. James Barclay IV bonds with his hunting dog, Bryant. A Williamsburg, Va., trainer donated his services to train Bryant for Barclay, who was wounded in an Afghanistan roadside-bomb attack. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joe Laws


By Army Spc. Andrew Orillion
Special to American Forces Press Service


WILLIAMSBURG, Va., June 27, 2008 – On Aug. 19, 2006, the life of Army Capt. James Barclay IV changed forever.

He was in the lead vehicle of a convoy in a remote area of Afghanistan when a roadside bomb tore through his vehicle. Barclay survived, but suffered burns over 40 percent of his body.

Barclay’s life changed again June 24, but this time for the better.

Marc Illman, owner of The Pet Resort at Greensprings here, reunited Barclay with Bryant, a chocolate Labrador retriever specially trained for hunting. Illman spent the last three months training the dog while Barclay underwent treatment for his injuries.

Bryant and Barclay’s story began shortly after Barclay started his recovery at the Wounded Warrior Center at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. A long-time outdoorsman, Barclay was eager to return to hunting, his favorite pastime. He adopted Bryant in August, but soon found that his injuries prevented him from properly caring for the pooch.

“I had him for about three weeks,” he said. “Due to the surgeries, I wasn’t going to able to do what I wanted to do with him, and spend as much time as I should with him, so I sent him to my dad’s house.”

In March, Barclay’s father, Army Brig. Gen. James Barclay III, former director of U.S. Joint Forces Command’s Joint Center for Operational Analysis, brought Bryant and another pet to Illman for boarding. When Illman found out about the situation, he volunteered to help train Bryant free of charge.

“I’m thrilled to do this, and I hope the dog works out for him and his family,” Illman said. “These young men in the armed services really don’t have a choice. They’re where they’re told to go, when they’re told to go there, and no matter what your political ideals are, they’re committed to serve the armed services, and it’s important they know that when they come home, as opposed to other wars we’ve had, that they have some support.”

Bryant’s training began with basic obedience training and socialization. Illman then moved on to more hunting and outdoor-specific training such as running through deep undergrowth and proper reaction to gunfire. He specifically trained the pup to hunt both water fowl and upland birds such as quail and pheasant. Illman said Bryant took easily to the training.

“What makes him really special is that, sometimes you have a dog that’s great around people [and] becomes a great house dog. We call them ‘couch potatoes,’ Illman said. “But he also has the ability to switch that off and become a great field-trial hunting dog.”

The elder Barclay, who recently left JFCom to become commanding general at Fort Rucker, Ala., said he’s grateful not only for Illman’s help, but also for everyone who reaches out to wounded servicemembers in need.

“It’s great to have Americans who support our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines, and he is prime example of that kind of support that is willing to give and do things for these kids,” the general said. “We’ve got great Americans out there that show their support in different ways for our kids. I think it’s wonderful, and folks like that need recognition.”

As Barclay reunited with his old friend, the two recognized each other right away and were inseparable from the moment they were reunited.

“It really means a lot to see that people here support me and the soldiers out here,” Barclay said. “Hopefully, [Bryant will] be my right-hand man.”

In addition to Bryant, Barclay received a free one-year supply of dog food and a weekend hunting trip at a resort in Montana.

With Bryant in tow, Barclay will head back to San Antonio to continue his recovery. He said he hopes to be better in time for the bird-hunting season in the fall.

“Once I get back, I’ll start working with him right away to try and create that bond you need in a hunting dog,” Barclay said.

(Army Spc. Andrew Orillion serves in the U.S. Joint Forces Command Public Affairs Office.)

Editor's Note: To find out about more individuals, groups and organizations that are helping support the troops, visit www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil. America Supports You directly connects military members to the support of the America people and offers a tool to the general public in their quest to find meaningful ways to support the military community.


Related Sites:
America Supports You

Labels: Afghanistan, Supporting Our Heroes, US Army, Wounded Heroes

WOUNDED WARRIOR CONCERT - Country music artist Wynonna Judd performs with the U.S. Army Band at the Wagner Sports Center, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C. The concert for staff and patients was held in conjunction with a Morale, Welfare and Recreation picnic that featured a local blues band, barbecue and steaks.Defense Dept. photo by Fred W. Baker III

Labels: photos, Tonal Troop Support, Walter Reed, Wounded Heroes

ALBATROSS FUN
Wounded soldiers assigned to the Warrior Transition Company on U.S. Naval Medical Center, San Diego, enjoy a moment of levity as they pose for a photo with the Red Bull Albatross seaplane after enjoying a VIP flight aboard the craft, May 2, 2008.
U.S. Navy photo Petty Officer Ryan Valverde

Labels: photos, Wounded Heroes

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 5, 2008 – With growing recognition of the toll post-traumatic stress disorder has taken on U.S. forces, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said the Defense Department may consider awarding Purple Heart medals to combat veterans afflicted with it.
“It’s an interesting idea,” Gates said when asked about the concept during a May 2 media availability at Red River Army Depot, Texas. “I think it is clearly something that needs to be looked at.”

Gates’ comment followed his visit the previous day to Fort Bliss, Texas, where he toured the post’s Recovery and Resilience Center, which is using a holistic approach to treating troops with PTSD.

John E. Fortunato, who conceived of and runs the center, told reporters that awarding the Purple Heart to PTSD sufferers would go a long way toward chipping away at prejudices surrounding the disease. Because PTSD affects structures in the brain, it’s a physical disorder, “no different from shrapnel,” Fortunato said. “This is an injury.”

The Army classifies PTSD as an illness, not an injury, so troops with PTSD don’t qualify for the Purple Heart. That distinction is limited to troops killed or wounded in a conflict.

“I would love to see that changed, because these guys have paid at least as high a price, some of them, as anybody with a traumatic brain injury, as anybody with a shrapnel wound,” Fortunato said.

Not recognizing those with PTSD with a Purple Heart “says that this is the wound that isn’t worthy,” Fortunato said. “And it is.”

Fortunato said he’d also like to see a regulation prohibiting harassment of troops with PTSD, similar to regulations banning racial or sexual harassment. “Until there are sanctions that make a superior pay a price for harassing a soldier with mental health problems, I don’t know that it will change that much.”

Soldiers still get laughed at for seeking mental-health services or told that it will ruin their careers, he said. Some in the force view people with PTSD as weak, believing that if those with the disease “just sucked it up and soldiered on, [they would] could get over this,” Fortunato said.

“The Army is making a lot of strides toward changing that, but it’s a slow go, because it has to happen at the grassroots level,” he said. “Like any other prejudice, it’s hard to die.”

During his visit to Fort Bliss, Gates announced a new policy in which combat veterans no longer have to acknowledge on their federal security clearance forms that they have received mental health care for combat stress. Gates said he hoped the policy would eliminate troops’ concerns that seeking mentalhealth care can cause them to be denied a security clearance and threaten their careers. He also expressed hope it would take the stigma away from seeking treatment.

Gates called on senior noncommissioned officers to encourage their soldiers who need it to get care, and to let them know that doing so is a sign of strength, not weakness.

“All of you have a special role in encouraging troops to seek help for the unseen scars of war -- to let them know that doing so is a sign of strength and maturity,” Gates told soldiers attending the Army Sergeants Major Academy, at Fort Bliss. “I urge you all to talk with those below you to find out where we can continue to improve.

“Those who have sacrificed for our nation deserve the best care they can get,” he continued. “As I have said before, there is no higher priority for the Department of Defense, after the war itself, than caring for our wounded warriors.”


Biographies:
Robert M. Gates


Related Articles:
Gates Asks Senior NCOs to Encourage Troops to Seek Mental Health Care
Special Report: Question 21

Labels: PTSD, Supporting Our Heroes, Wounded Heroes

NEW YORK — John Fernandez should not have been playing lacrosse in the Army-Navy alumni game at Madison Square Garden.

By all rights, the former U.S. Army first lieutenant should be dead. But luck intervened.

"It was just a matter of chance — pure luck," said Fernandez of Shoreham, Long Island, who was severely wounded in Iraq after a U.S. plane dropped a 500-pound bomb on his Humvee in a case of friendly fire on April 3, 2003. Shrapnel from the explosion shredded his legs.

"I crawled," Fernandez recalled. "I couldn't walk."

More than five years later, the soldier can do more than just walk. He can play lacrosse thanks to prosthetic limbs as he demonstrated during the Heroes Cup, which preceded the New York Titans professional game Saturday night.


Read the Rest, at Fox News

Labels: Good News, heroes, US Army, Wounded Heroes

HONORING A MARINE - Marine Corps Maj. Mike J. Corrado leads a platoon of 32 Marines to the home of Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Daniel Gilyeat, wounded while serving with the 24th Marine Regiment. The Marines' Nov. 10, 2007, salute was part of the final ceremony of an episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" in which Gillyeat's Leavenworth, Kan., home was remodeled. Marines Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Bryan Eberly

Labels: 24th MEU, photos, Staff Sgt. Daniel Gilyeat, USMC, Wounded Heroes

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service


WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2007 – If you are wounded in combat and discharged as a result, you will not have to pay back your enlistment bonus, Defense Department officials said here today.

“Bonuses are not recouped simply for one's inability to complete an enlistment or re-enlistment agreement through no fault of the military member,” a policy statement said.

Pentagon officials re-stated their policy after a wounded soldier in Pennsylvania received a bill from the Army. Jordan Fox was a private first class in Baqouba, Iraq, when he was wounded in the explosion of an improvised explosive device. Fox suffered vision troubles in his right eye and suffered a back injury when the bomb went off in May.

Fox was medically discharged and went home to his town near Pittsburgh. The Army sent him a letter asking him to repay $2,800 of his $7,500 enlistment bonus. He received a second letter telling him the Army would charge interest if he didn't make a payment within 30 days.

“Department policy prohibits recoupment when it would be contrary to equity and good conscience, or would be contrary to the nation's interests,” according to the Defense Department policy statement. “Those circumstances include, for example, an inability to complete a service agreement because of illness, injury, disability, or other impairment that did not clearly result from misconduct.”

Department policy on recoupment also establishes that, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the secretaries of the military departments “shall remit or cancel any and all theater debt incurred by military members who were medically evacuated from a combat zone due to injury or illness, except in the event of clear misconduct.”

Army officials said Fox will not be required to pay back any enlistment money he received. “By all accounts, his case seems to be an isolated one,” Army officials said. Anyone who does have an issue can call the Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline at 1-800-984-8523.

Labels: Department of Defense, Jordan Fox, Recoupment, Wounded Heroes

An American soldier who was seriously wounded during a bomb attack in Iraq on Nov. 13 re-enlisted just hours after the ambush, telling Army officers he still had a job to do, the Army reported Monday.

Spc. Christopher Hoyt, an infantryman from California with the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based out of Fort Lewis, Wash., was injured after an improvised explosive device — or IED — exploded near him while he was out on a foot patrol near Zaganiyah, Iraq...

Read the Rest, at Fox News

Labels: 2nd ID, heroes, US Army, Wounded Heroes

Volunteers and airmen assigned to the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group load a soldier into an ambulance bus at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. When wounded servicemembers and Iraqi military members and civilians are brought to the Air Force Theater Hospital, they are treated and then taken to the contingency aeromedical staging facility to await transportation to either a military or Iraqi hospital. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Medics assigned to the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group emergency room and contingency aeromedical staging facility bring Army Cpl. Erick Rodriguez into the Air Force theater hospital's emergency room, Aug. 3, 2007. Rodriguez sustained abdominal injuries from an improvised explosive device. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

2nd Lt. Christine Duro and Staff Sgt. Derick Tibbetts, both assigned to the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group, draw blood as Master Sgt. Nancy Quemuel, assigned to the contingency aeromedical staging facility, discusses air evacuation and treatment for Army Cpl. Erick Rodriguez, a cavalry scout assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division, Aug. 3, 2007. Rodriguez assigned to the Forward Operating Base Warhorse, sustained abdominal injuries from an improvised explosive device. He was the last patient to be treated in the Air Force theater hospital's tent facility at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Maj. Julie Zwies and Capt. Kathy Betts inventory equipment at the new Air Force theater hospital at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. Starting at 4 a.m., about 150 base volunteers and 380 332nd EMDG airmen moved patients and equipment to the newly upgraded, pre-engineered facility. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Senior Airman James Ray and Tech. Sgt. Christopher Harwell move operating room equipment from the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group's Air Force theater hospital's tent facility to its newly upgraded, pre-engineered facility at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Volunteers and airmen assigned to the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group remove sandbags from part of the Air Force theater hospital's tent facility Aug. 3, 2007. The tent hospital was around 63,100 square feet which was made up of more than 30 tents. The upgraded former Iraqi Air Force Academy hospital is about 97,000 square feet. It has 20 intensive care units, 40 beds and up to eight operating tables. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Volunteers, airmen and soldiers assigned to the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group move equipment and patients from the Air Force theater hospital's tent facility to the newly upgraded, pre-engineered facility at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins

Staff Sgt. Tanja Green, Senior Airman Jacklynn Levasseur and Army Spc. Ivan Nazario finish moving the last pieces of equipment from the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group's Air Force theater hospital's tent facility to its newly upgraded, pre-engineered facility at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Shannon Collins




More photo essays at DefendAmerica

Labels: 332nd Medical Group, Air Force Theater Hospital, Balad Air Base, Iraq, military hospitals, photo essays, photos, USAF, Wounded Heroes

PURPLE HEART
U.S. Army Spc. Cocin Laird Pearcy and Gen. Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, talk after Pearcy was presented the Purple Heart medal at Landsthul Regional Medical Center, Germany July 21, 2007. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. D. Myles Cullen

Labels: General Pace, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, photos, Purple Heart, US Army, Wounded Heroes

WHEELCHAIR GAMES
U.S. Air Force veteran Daniel Young masters the slalom course, June 19, 2007, at the 27th National Veterans Wheelchair Games in Milwaukee, Wis., held June 19 to 23. More than 500 disabled veterans were at the games, sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Paralyzed Veterans of America. National Veterans Affairs Office photo - More Photos

Labels: National Veterans Wheelchair Games, Paralyzed Veterans of America, photos, USAF, Veterans Affairs, Wounded Heroes

If you read the headlines today,you'll discover that my state isn't all that fond of Best Buy right now. I tell you, though, they deserve serious kudos for this one:




WASHINGTON, D.C., May 22 - "Connectivity," helping wounded or injured service members stay connected with their families while hospital patients, is the theme of Best Buy's Memorial Day through Fourth of July campaign to support the nonprofit Fisher House Foundation.

Best Buy, the nation's largest consumer electronics retailer, is partnering with the 38 Fisher Houses - large multi-family comfort homes on the grounds of 18 major military medical centers and nine VA medical centers - to donate lap top computers and other support to make it easier for service men and women at these medical centers stay in touch with their friends and families. The Campaign also gives Best Buy customers an easy way to support Fisher House, the troops and their families through in-store and online donations.

Beginning on Memorial Day Weekend and continuing through the week of July 4th, Best Buy customers can donate to Fisher House at any Best Buy register during check-out, or any time from the Best Buy website, www.bestbuy.com. Best Buy vendor partners, including Nintendo, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba are donating lap top computers, flat screen televisions, Wii gaming systems and other technology to the Campaign. Best Buy employees will volunteer at Fisher Houses and help install and service the new systems. All is part of an effort by Best Buy to provide the Fisher Houses with the most modern technology so the families can remain connected to their loved ones.

The Fisher House program began in 1990 when philanthropists and patriots Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher offered to build and donate to the government comfort homes on the grounds of military medical centers to permit service members to be close to their families during a hospitalization. The program at VA medical centers began later in 1994. Today, there is at least one Fisher House at every major military medical center, and more are planned. Since September 11, 2001, Fisher House Foundation has made support to service men and women hospitalized as a result of their service in Iraq or Afghanistan, and their families, its highest priority. The six Fisher Houses that will start construction in 2007 are being built at locations where the combat casualties will receive long term rehabilitation. The equipment and services being donated by Best Buy will improve the quality of life for these service members and their families, and enable to them to stay connected with their families and friends.


About Fisher House
Fisher House Foundation is best known for the network of 38 comfort homes on the grounds of military and VA major medical centers. The houses are 5,000 to 16,000 square foot homes, with up to 21 suites, donated to the military and VA by the Fisher House Foundation. The program provides support to families of patients receiving care at the nearby medical center and has ensured that families of service men and women wounded or injured in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom do not pay for their stay at a Fisher House or other base facility if they are on a wait list. For more information on the work of Fisher House Foundation, go to www.fisherhouse.org or call toll-free (888) 294-8560.


About Best Buy Co., Inc.
Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) operates a global portfolio of brands with a commitment to growth and innovation. Best Buy's employees strive to provide customers around the world with superior experiences by responding to their unique needs and aspirations. The company sells consumer electronics, home-office products, entertainment software, appliances and related services through more than 1,150 retail stores across the United States, throughout Canada and in China. Our multi-channel operations include: Best Buy (BestBuy.com, BestBuy.ca and BestBuy.com.cn), Future Shop (FutureShop.ca), Geek Squad (GeekSquad.com and GeekSquad.ca), Pacific Sales Kitchen and Bath Centers (PacificSales.com), Magnolia Audio Video (Magnoliaav.com) and Jiangsu Five Star Appliance Co. (Five-Star.cn). Best Buy supports the communities in which its employees work and live through volunteerism and grants that benefit children and education.

Labels: Supporting the troops, Wounded Heroes

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service


VAIL, Colo., March 8, 2007 – For the fourth consecutive year, 25 veterans wounded in the global war on terrorism will test their mettle on the slopes thanks to the Vail Veterans Program’s winter sports clinic that kicked off here yesterday.

“We’re really a stepping stone in their recovery. This is therapeutic for them to be here,” Cheryl Jensen, director of the Vail Veterans Program said during a kick-off dinner here yesterday. “By the time they leave here, they’re totally comfortable with themselves or have confidence that they never had.

“They grow emotionally and physically while they’re here in a matter of four days,” she added.

Army Maj. Dave Rozelle, administrator for Walter Reed Army Medical Center's Amputee Care Center, knows how true this is. He lost part of his right foot while serving in Iraq in 2003. He told the group that skiing had made him feel free and independent after his injury.

“I felt like an angel coming down that mountain,” he said. “I hope you all find the same freedom I did.”

Rozelle served a second tour in Iraq after being injured.

The Vail Veterans Program can offers this weekend to the servicemembers thanks, in part, to the generosity of this community, Jensen said. Lodging for the troops and the majority of the airfare to get them to the slopes here was donated. The story is the same for equipment rental, lift tickets, instruction for the veterans and their guests. Most meals, including a special meal on the final evening prepared by the local firefighters, are gratis, as well.

For five of the veterans, this winter sports clinic is old hat, and they’ll serve as mentors, Jensen said. The other 20 servicemembers are patients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, in Washington, and this is the first major trip away from the facility for most of them.

Throughout the program, which concludes March 11, the wounded warriors receive private instruction in a number of snow sports, including skiing and snowboarding. To accommodate their injuries, which include missing limbs, the instructors help them learn to use adaptive equipment, Jensen said.

While the veterans are acquiring or polishing their skills, their guests participate in group lessons. While Willow Fesmire’s husband, former Marine Sgt. Christopher Fesmire, who has gone through the program three times, works with the first-timers, she’ll polish her snowboarding skills.

“(I’m) very excited,” she said about her first experience with the program.

Sgt. Fesmire, an avid snowboarder before his injury, was medically retired from the 1st Marine Division after losing both legs above the knee in Qaim, Iraq, in October 2004.

First organized in 2004 as a one-time event, the Vail Veterans Program has earned nonprofit status and doubled the number of veterans it invited the first year. Still, it remains small enough to provide the veterans one-on-one attention, and that’s what attracted the support of this year’s title sponsor, the Wounded Warrior Project. Defense contractor Lockheed Martin, an aerospace manufacturer, also is sponsoring this year’s event.

The Wounded Warrior Project is a member of America Supports You, a Defense Department program highlighting the ways Americans and the corporate sector are supporting the nation’s servicemembers.

“It’s a small-enough group to where everybody can know everybody and support one another,” Bruce Nitsche, executive vice president of the Wounded Warrior Project, said. “I think it’s more like being with your family, and I think when it’s really a community-based program … the level of caring comes through easier.”

Nitsche added that his organization has signed on to sponsor two summer sports clinics the Vail Veterans Program will offer this year. The first summer clinic was held in 2006.


Related Sites:
America Supports You
Vail Veterans Program
Wounded Warrior Project

Labels: Good News, Supporting the troops, Wounded Heroes

An inspiring article you've got to read...


By Brian Bowling
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Sitting on a mono-ski as an instructor straps him on, Spc. Reddi Parker wondered if the designer of the device went a little overboard.
"How many straps do you need to strap over your waist?" asked Parker, 26, of Jonesboro, Ark.

The apparent answer is three.

Parker and seven other injured soldiers and Marines from Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington hit the slopes at Liberty Mountain Resort in Adams County this weekend as part of a program sponsored by the Wounded Warrior Project of Jacksonville, Fla., and Disabled Sports USA of Rockville, Md.

"I just wanted to get out of the hospital and have some fun," Parker said. "I wanted to repay my sister for staying with me while I was injured. Plus, I like to ski."

You can read the rest over at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. And when you get there, make sure to check out the picture of Sam F., a Hero Soldiers' Angels knows well, tearing up the slopes. HOOAHH, Sam!

There are other pictures, and some video, so be sure to check this one out.



Thanks to Soldiers' Angel Shelle for the tip!

Labels: Good News, Supporting the troops, Wounded Heroes