Amputees Returning To Active Duty
Steven L. Fries, CPO
Description
Collection
Title:
Amputees Returning To Active Duty
Creator:
Steven L. Fries, CPO
Text:
WASHINGTON — Cpl. Jemel Daniels was a gunner on patrol with his unit in
Iskandere, Iraq (search), when his Humvee hit a makeshift bomb on the side of the
road.
I shot out of the turret 30 feet into the air and fell into a ditch on the
side of the road. My friends dragged me across the road. Just two of us
actually got out and three passed away, the corporal said.
Daniels works out hard without appearing to give much thought now to his
injuries — an amputated left leg, a battered arm and a shattered right foot now
stabilized by painful steel pins running through it. None of his wounds have
deterred his future plans.
I'm staying active duty, he said.
It used to be that soldiers who lost arms or legs in battle would be headed
home for good. But more and more seriously wounded soldiers are telling the
U.S. Army (search) that they want to get back to their posts. It's a phenomenon
that's caught the attention of the military's top brass and even President Bush.
Americans would be surprised to learn that a grievous injury such as the
loss of a limb no longer means forced discharge, Bush noted in a speech at
Walter Reed Army Medical Center (search) in December 2003.
Iskandere, Iraq (search), when his Humvee hit a makeshift bomb on the side of the
road.
I shot out of the turret 30 feet into the air and fell into a ditch on the
side of the road. My friends dragged me across the road. Just two of us
actually got out and three passed away, the corporal said.
Daniels works out hard without appearing to give much thought now to his
injuries — an amputated left leg, a battered arm and a shattered right foot now
stabilized by painful steel pins running through it. None of his wounds have
deterred his future plans.
I'm staying active duty, he said.
It used to be that soldiers who lost arms or legs in battle would be headed
home for good. But more and more seriously wounded soldiers are telling the
U.S. Army (search) that they want to get back to their posts. It's a phenomenon
that's caught the attention of the military's top brass and even President Bush.
Americans would be surprised to learn that a grievous injury such as the
loss of a limb no longer means forced discharge, Bush noted in a speech at
Walter Reed Army Medical Center (search) in December 2003.
Citation
Steven L. Fries, CPO, “Amputees Returning To Active Duty,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 2, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/224462.
