Fallen but not forgotten: Helping the wounded
Posted: Wednesday, March 05, 2008 3:03 PM by Daily Nightly Contributor
Filed Under:
John Rutherford
By John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Army Sgt. Michael Minard, 26, of Grand Junction, Colo., was on his third tour in Iraq when tragedy struck.
"1 October we were out on a recon just a couple clicks north of Sadr City in Baghdad and on the way we got hit by a [roadside bomb]," he said. "It tore through our Stryker and stripped my legs apart."
Sgt. Minard lost both of his legs. He's been recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for the past five months.
I first met him on Feb. 14 during a tour of the hospital's new outpatient clinic. He praised the care he's received at Walter Reed.
"It's been really good," he told me. "I've had no problems. Everything's been amazing, actually."
| I saw him again on March 4. He was one of three patients receiving Purple Hearts. I asked if he and his family needed anything.
"No, we can take care of ourselves pretty good," he said. "Just continue taking care of the soldiers overseas. Send them care packages. They need all the support they can get."
Sgt. Minard's wife, Lynda, recently gave birth to their second daughter, Brooke. She joins 4-year-old Kayla. I asked about his future.
"Basically, I'm taking one step at a time right now," he said. "All the goals that I did have, they've all changed, obviously. I know I want to go to school. I need to get a college degree if I'm going to get anywhere."
Sgt. Minard recently learned he has received a full scholarship to Colorado Technical University.
If you'd like to do something for the wounded soldiers at Walter Reed, simply go to www.wramc.army.mil and click on "donate" in the bottom right of your screen.
And if you'd like to know what you can do for all of our service members, here are some websites sent in by readers: www.anysoldier.com; www.soldiersangels.com; www.letssaythanks.com; www.health.mil; www.adoptaplatoon.com, and www.marineparents.com. If you know of similar websites, please send them to us in the comment section below.
Click here to read tributes to the 76 U.S. troops who've died this year in Iraq and Afghanistan, including the following three casualties from last week:
1. Army Spc. Michael Phillips, 19, of Ardmore, Okla.
2. Army Spc. Orlando Perez, 23, of Houston.
3. Army Spc. Kevin Mowl, 22, of Pittsford, N.Y.
Washington Producer John Rutherford is a decorated Vietnam veteran. He also posts stories on the military at www.fieldnotes.msnbc.com (click on "John Rutherford" under "categories") and at http://john-rutherford.newsvine.com/. The tribute gallery can be found at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22802019/.
