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VFW ‘Wounded Warrior Program’
(by Kathryn A. Burger - December 19, 2007)
The 2007 “Wounded Warrior Program” of VFW Post #8946 brought support, comfort, and encouragement to dozens of service personnel recovering from injuries sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Last month, post members made their fourth one-day roundtrip visit to soldiers and their families. On this trip they visited
Bethesda
Naval
Medical
Center . The previous three trips had been to
Walter
Reed
Army
Medical
Center . As they have done on previous visits, they brought an ample supply of electric shavers as well as “wish list” items that the patients had requested. After distributing the shavers and other items to the patients at their bedsides, the remaining items were turned over to the hospital to be given to new combat-wounded patients.
At
Bethesda , they were joined by Lt. General Raymond Johns, U.S. Air Force, who drove up from the Pentagon. The general and his aide, Lt. Col. Susan Pietrykowski, had lunch with the post members and then visited the hospital with them.
William Huston, the post’s quartermaster, who has made all four trips, said, “The hospitals work together as they specialize in handling different types of wounds. Walter Reed specializes in wounds that require orthopedic surgery and prostheses rehabilitation.
Bethesda specializes in head wounds that require surgery to restore the body that is in most cases, followed by plastic surgery. These surgeons are on the forefront in treating severe wounds to the head and body caused by shrapnel.”
During this visit, the post members learned that many top surgeons from across the country come to
Bethesda
Naval
Medical
Center to attend seminars and learn of new techniques being developed there. “Many of the patients recovering now would have never survived only a few years ago,” Huston said.
On each of their four trips, the post members have spoken with family members of wounded soldiers. On this visit, they spoke with the mother of a soldier who had sustained a severe head injury. Huston said hearing the story was “heart-wrenching.” The mother, who said she had been at her son’s bedside for nine months, told them her son was a Marine who served a tour in and was discharged. “He joined the New Hampshire National Guard, which was activated. He was sent back to where he was wounded,” Huston said.
Reflecting on the trips the post has made, Huston said, “We learned so much about our military hospitals and how they are in the forefront in caring for our wounded men and women who have served our country so bravely. The doctors and nurses have done a remarkable job. I cannot emphasize enough, and I can’t say enough about the chaplains who work with the wounded on daily basis. This is not an easy task, but they keep their spirits intact.”
The post is grateful to everyone who responded to its call for donations. “All this happened due to the generosity of the people of the
Pascack
Valley ,” Huston said.
While the shavers and other items were appreciated by the patients, what was especially meaningful to them was that the post had had taken the time to visit them in person.
“They all have a story to tell,” Huston said, “We understood. After all, we were soldiers once.”
Kathryn A. Burger's e-mail address is burger@northjersey.com
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