‘Full of Heart’: Martinez returns to post to promote new book
Posted: Thursday, November 15, 2012
by Yvette Smith, Courier staff
Before appearing on the world stage, J.R. Martinez served his country as a 101st Airborne Division Screaming Eagle. Although he is now known by many as the season 13 winner of “Dancing with the Stars”, as well as for his roles on “All My Children” and “Army Wives,” he has not forgotten his roots.
Promoting his new memoir, “Full of Heart,” Martinez took time to visit Fort Campbell and sign copies of his book while chatting with those who waited patiently Friday at the Fort Campbell Exchange.
“It’s great to be back,” said a smiling Martinez. “This is a special place in my heart. It’s nice to have the opportunity to be embraced and to be able to share with some of the troops and Families [at] a post that does so much for its country.”
With some waiting in line for more than three hours, the crowd gathered at the Exchange anxiously awaited a chance to meet Martinez. A group of Fort Campbell High School seniors were especially excited.
“We want to ask him to be our senior speaker at graduation,” said FCHS senior Charlie Cusic. “A lot of parents are being deployed this year. Like my dad, he’s not going to be at my graduation. We want to have somebody that knows what it’s like to serve in the military and all the hardships that come with it.”
Family member Miranda Poole said the book brought her out to the signing. “I don’t really watch ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ I started looking into his story and stuff, and my husband is deployed, so his story … it’s heartfelt.“
read more here
Showing posts with label burn wounds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label burn wounds. Show all posts
Friday, November 16, 2012
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Combat Wounded Iraq Veteran "Medical Miracle"
Marine veteran keeps a smile on his face, which is a medical miracle
Octavio Sanchez of Fontana was badly burned and lost one hand and his nose seven years ago in Iraq, but he's happy to be alive and with his family.
By T.J. Simers
November 3, 2012
So much bellyaching in sports today, so many athletes talking about the adversity they overcome, and Octavio Sanchez loses his right hand, two fingers on his left, his nose burns off and he says, "I've been blessed."
It's a lump-in-your throat UCLA Saturday night in the Rose Bowl, Fontana's very own Sanchez on the field between the first and second quarters, victory already his.
"It'd be a beautiful thing if I could throw a football to my kids," he says, but he's just fine with the prosthesis prongs working now as his right hand; painting the house, working on cars and waving to UCLA football fans.
He's lucky too, he says, and although the three remaining fingers on his other hand are fused together, swelling sometimes and looking like sausages, there's sensation.
"It's something special," he says, "to touch your children and feel their faces."
Octavio Sanchez of Fontana was badly burned and lost one hand and his nose seven years ago in Iraq, but he's happy to be alive and with his family.
By T.J. Simers
November 3, 2012
Octavio Sanchez sits with his wife, Vanette, and their children -- Jacob, Ryan, Jaslyn and Octavio -- at the Rose Bowl, where he will be honored with other members of the Operation Mend program Saturday before the UCLA-Arizona game.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times / November 3, 2012)
So much bellyaching in sports today, so many athletes talking about the adversity they overcome, and Octavio Sanchez loses his right hand, two fingers on his left, his nose burns off and he says, "I've been blessed."
It's a lump-in-your throat UCLA Saturday night in the Rose Bowl, Fontana's very own Sanchez on the field between the first and second quarters, victory already his.
"It'd be a beautiful thing if I could throw a football to my kids," he says, but he's just fine with the prosthesis prongs working now as his right hand; painting the house, working on cars and waving to UCLA football fans.
He's lucky too, he says, and although the three remaining fingers on his other hand are fused together, swelling sometimes and looking like sausages, there's sensation.
"It's something special," he says, "to touch your children and feel their faces."
Almost 30 operations on his body, maybe more, but it's not like home runs hit, so who's counting?
He dies, several times, before being brought back, 68% of his body suffers third-degree burns and Sanchez says, he knows of only one way to react.
"Move forward."
And some people think they're having a bad day when their team loses.
read more here
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Army Col. David McKimmey, Bronze Star for Valor in Iraq
Wyoming soldier injured in Iraq earns Bronze Star for valor
JOAN BARRON
Casper Star-Tribune
October 13, 2012
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Army Col. David McKimmey didn't realize his leg had been broken until he tried to stand up.
He didn't find out until later that he had other fractures and burns to his face and hands.
He patted himself down, checking for bleeding. He found none.
McKimmey crawled to the burning Humvee and tried unsuccessfully to save another soldier inside.
He continued providing first aid to two other soldiers until the evacuation team arrived.
It was Sept. 5, 2007, on a road north of Balad, Iraq.
An improved explosive device buried in the road had exploded when McKimmey's Humvee, one of a three-vehicle convoy, drove over it.
Of the four men in the vehicle, only McKimmey and another soldier survived.
The crew was nearing the end of its 15-month deployment in Iraq.
read more here
JOAN BARRON
Casper Star-Tribune
October 13, 2012
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Army Col. David McKimmey didn't realize his leg had been broken until he tried to stand up.
He didn't find out until later that he had other fractures and burns to his face and hands.
He patted himself down, checking for bleeding. He found none.
McKimmey crawled to the burning Humvee and tried unsuccessfully to save another soldier inside.
He continued providing first aid to two other soldiers until the evacuation team arrived.
It was Sept. 5, 2007, on a road north of Balad, Iraq.
An improved explosive device buried in the road had exploded when McKimmey's Humvee, one of a three-vehicle convoy, drove over it.
Of the four men in the vehicle, only McKimmey and another soldier survived.
The crew was nearing the end of its 15-month deployment in Iraq.
read more here
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Wounded Iraq veteran, dancing star, J.R. Martinez is a new Dad
J.R. Martinez, girlfriend Diana Gonzalez-Jones welcome baby girl Lauryn Anabelle Martinez
The Iraq war vet says his daughter has 'a full head of hair and the cutest little lips'
BY CRISTINA EVERETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Thursday, May 3, 2012
J.R. Martinez has a new little lady in his life.
The Iraq war veteran and “Dancing with the Stars” champ became a father Wednesday night when he and girlfriend Diana Gonzalez-Jones welcomed their first child together.
Baby girl Lauryn Anabelle Martinez, born in Los Angeles, weighed in at 7 lbs., 13 oz. and is 21 inches long.
“She’s already got a nickname – Belle,” Martinez, 28, told People of his daughter.
Read more
The Iraq war vet says his daughter has 'a full head of hair and the cutest little lips'
BY CRISTINA EVERETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Thursday, May 3, 2012
J.R. Martinez has a new little lady in his life.
The Iraq war veteran and “Dancing with the Stars” champ became a father Wednesday night when he and girlfriend Diana Gonzalez-Jones welcomed their first child together.
Baby girl Lauryn Anabelle Martinez, born in Los Angeles, weighed in at 7 lbs., 13 oz. and is 21 inches long.
“She’s already got a nickname – Belle,” Martinez, 28, told People of his daughter.
Read more
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
For Soldier Disfigured in War, a Way to Return to the World
This is truly an amazing story of one of the many wounded in our name. Watch the video, hear his voice and then think of all he went through. It will bring a tear to your eyes so grab some tissues first. WOW.
By JAMES DAO
Published: January 30, 2012
Specialist Joey Paulk awoke from a coma in a Texas hospital three weeks after he was burned nearly to death in Afghanistan. Wrapped in bandages from head almost to toe, he immediately saw his girlfriend and mother, and felt comforted. Then he glanced at his hands, two balls of white gauze, and realized that he had no fingers.
So it began: the shock of recognition. Next came what burn doctors call “the mirror test.” As he was shuffling through a hallway at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, he passed a large mirror that he had turned away from before. This time he steeled himself and looked.
His swollen lower lip hung below his gums. His left lower eyelid drooped hound dog-like, revealing a scarlet crescent of raw tissue. His nostrils were squeezed shut, his chin had virtually disappeared and the top half of one ear was gone. Skin grafts crisscrossed his face like lines on a map, and silver medicine coated his scars, making him look like something out of a Terminator film.
“This is who I am now,” he told himself.
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THE HARD ROAD BACK | SCARS OF BATTLE
For Soldier Disfigured in War, a Way to Return to the World
By Sarah Kramer and Meaghan Looram
The Shock of Recognition: After nearly 30 operations, Joey Paulk began to resign himself to his appearance. But with help from a program that aids badly burned veterans, he received surgery that revived his self-confidence.
By JAMES DAO
Published: January 30, 2012
Specialist Joey Paulk awoke from a coma in a Texas hospital three weeks after he was burned nearly to death in Afghanistan. Wrapped in bandages from head almost to toe, he immediately saw his girlfriend and mother, and felt comforted. Then he glanced at his hands, two balls of white gauze, and realized that he had no fingers.
So it began: the shock of recognition. Next came what burn doctors call “the mirror test.” As he was shuffling through a hallway at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, he passed a large mirror that he had turned away from before. This time he steeled himself and looked.
His swollen lower lip hung below his gums. His left lower eyelid drooped hound dog-like, revealing a scarlet crescent of raw tissue. His nostrils were squeezed shut, his chin had virtually disappeared and the top half of one ear was gone. Skin grafts crisscrossed his face like lines on a map, and silver medicine coated his scars, making him look like something out of a Terminator film.
“This is who I am now,” he told himself.
read more here
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Iraq war veteran J.R. Martinez now 'Dancing' champ
Iraq war veteran J.R. Martinez now 'Dancing' champ
(AP) LOS ANGELES — J.R. Martinez started out as the least-known member of the "Dancing With the Stars" cast, but as the season went on, America fell in love with the 28-year-old soldier-turned-soap opera star.
"Dancing" draws 18 million viewers a week who got a firsthand look at the Iraq war veteran with the infectious positive attitude. They heard his story: How he was severely burned over more than 40 percent of his body when the Humvee he was driving for the U.S. Army struck a land mine, how he underwent numerous surgeries over years of recovery — then they saw him dancing like that had happened to somebody else. The 28-year-old actor and motivational speaker radiates joy.
"You've got such a sparkling personality, you just light up this room," ''Dancing" judge Len Goodman said.
Earlier this month, Martinez was chosen as grand marshal of the 123rd annual Tournament of Roses parade. He was on the cover of People magazine and named one of its "sexiest men" a few weeks later. And on Tuesday, he became the new "Dancing With the Stars" champion.
(AP) LOS ANGELES — J.R. Martinez started out as the least-known member of the "Dancing With the Stars" cast, but as the season went on, America fell in love with the 28-year-old soldier-turned-soap opera star.
"Dancing" draws 18 million viewers a week who got a firsthand look at the Iraq war veteran with the infectious positive attitude. They heard his story: How he was severely burned over more than 40 percent of his body when the Humvee he was driving for the U.S. Army struck a land mine, how he underwent numerous surgeries over years of recovery — then they saw him dancing like that had happened to somebody else. The 28-year-old actor and motivational speaker radiates joy.
"You've got such a sparkling personality, you just light up this room," ''Dancing" judge Len Goodman said.
Earlier this month, Martinez was chosen as grand marshal of the 123rd annual Tournament of Roses parade. He was on the cover of People magazine and named one of its "sexiest men" a few weeks later. And on Tuesday, he became the new "Dancing With the Stars" champion.
Monday, November 7, 2011
J.R. Martinez, the “Dancing With the Stars'' Iraq Vet scores perfect
J.R. Martinez, the “Dancing With the Stars" Iraq Veteran has pulled off a perfect score of 30 tonight. It is the first time this season anyone has managed to do that. He is adorable and what is inside of this man shows more than any scar could ever cover up.
There were a lot of men in uniform in the audience and their pride was easy to see.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
'Dancing With The Stars': J.R. Martinez Brings The Tears
'Dancing With The Stars': J.R. Martinez Brings The Tears
Ricki Lake nabs the season's highest score so far with emotional rumba.
By Kelley L. Carter
J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff
War hero Martinez picked the year he was injured in Iraq when he drove over a landmine. He shared the story of when he first looked at his face after his accident and talked about how he started to blame himself and question how his life had turned upside down. He said it was a tough time in his life and didn't think there was anyone who could understand the pain he was going through. He picked Tim McGraw's "If You're Reading This" for his rumba and said there are a lot of families that don't get a second chance. His dance was in tribute to the men and women who didn't make it home. The judges and the audience (judging by the long applause) found the dance to be beautiful and moving. "Heroes are normal people. Tonight, you did something extraordinary: You touched us all. That was one of the most profound, honest dances I've ever seen," Inaba said. 26/30
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Ricki Lake nabs the season's highest score so far with emotional rumba.
By Kelley L. Carter
J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff
War hero Martinez picked the year he was injured in Iraq when he drove over a landmine. He shared the story of when he first looked at his face after his accident and talked about how he started to blame himself and question how his life had turned upside down. He said it was a tough time in his life and didn't think there was anyone who could understand the pain he was going through. He picked Tim McGraw's "If You're Reading This" for his rumba and said there are a lot of families that don't get a second chance. His dance was in tribute to the men and women who didn't make it home. The judges and the audience (judging by the long applause) found the dance to be beautiful and moving. "Heroes are normal people. Tonight, you did something extraordinary: You touched us all. That was one of the most profound, honest dances I've ever seen," Inaba said. 26/30
read more here
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Wounded Iraq Veteran Dancing With the Stars
Ex-Fort Campbell soldier takes lead on 'Dancing With the Stars'
Written by
Philip Grey and Alane S. Megna
Gannett Tennessee
Martinez and his professional partner Karina Smirnoff tied for the top score during the season premiere Monday night, with judge Carrie Ann Inaba, on the verge of tears, saying “I was absolutely touched by your performance.”
Martinez, who required skin grafts and reconstructive surgery after being burned over 40 percent of his body, points to one moment as a “life-changer” — when medical personnel asked him to talk to another soldier who was badly disfigured and unable to cope.
read more here
Written by
Philip Grey and Alane S. Megna
Gannett Tennessee
J.R. Martinez danced a Viennese Waltz with Karina Smirnoff Monday night on Dancing with the Stars. / Craig Sjodin / ABCJ.R. Martinez, an Iraq war veteran and former Fort Campbell soldier who spent 34 months in the hospital after being severely burned in combat, had already become a motivational speaker and soap opera star. Now he can add another feather to his cap: High scorer on Dancing With The Stars.
Martinez and his professional partner Karina Smirnoff tied for the top score during the season premiere Monday night, with judge Carrie Ann Inaba, on the verge of tears, saying “I was absolutely touched by your performance.”
Martinez, who required skin grafts and reconstructive surgery after being burned over 40 percent of his body, points to one moment as a “life-changer” — when medical personnel asked him to talk to another soldier who was badly disfigured and unable to cope.
read more here
Saturday, May 7, 2011
A mother’s love fans son’s will to survive
A mother’s love fans son’s will to survive
By ERIC ADLER
The Kansas City Star
On the fifth floor of the University of Kansas Hospital, in a corner room in the burn unit, a mother leans close to her son’s right ear.
He lies on the bed, eyes closed. Burns cover 90 percent of his body. Tubes snake from veins and his throat into humming machines.
“Josh?” Lisa Ott Battagliola whispers.
Whether her boy, Josh Langton, 27, can hear her, she doesn’t know. Even if he can, the memory of her presence may be lost in the fog of pain medication.
It doesn’t matter.
“Josh?” she says again.
Because if there’s one simple Mother’s Day lesson that Battagliola — a 4-foot-11-inch mom given to form-fitting jeans and high heels, born 50 years ago to a tough Las Vegas construction family — has learned through years of family hardships, through ups and down with her eldest son, it’s this:
“At the end of the day, tell your child, no matter how old they are, that you love them. Because no matter how old they are, they’re your child. Make sure they know you love them. One day you may get that 4 o’clock in the morning phone call.”
Read more: A mother’s love fans son’s will to survive
By ERIC ADLER
The Kansas City Star
On the fifth floor of the University of Kansas Hospital, in a corner room in the burn unit, a mother leans close to her son’s right ear.
He lies on the bed, eyes closed. Burns cover 90 percent of his body. Tubes snake from veins and his throat into humming machines.
“Josh?” Lisa Ott Battagliola whispers.
Whether her boy, Josh Langton, 27, can hear her, she doesn’t know. Even if he can, the memory of her presence may be lost in the fog of pain medication.
It doesn’t matter.
“Josh?” she says again.
Because if there’s one simple Mother’s Day lesson that Battagliola — a 4-foot-11-inch mom given to form-fitting jeans and high heels, born 50 years ago to a tough Las Vegas construction family — has learned through years of family hardships, through ups and down with her eldest son, it’s this:
“At the end of the day, tell your child, no matter how old they are, that you love them. Because no matter how old they are, they’re your child. Make sure they know you love them. One day you may get that 4 o’clock in the morning phone call.”
Josh has a wife, Jamie, and a 3-year-old daughter, Lilly, to live for. He was a soldier who survived Iraq and the PTSD nightmares that later haunted him.
Read more: A mother’s love fans son’s will to survive
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Sailor still hospitalized after fire aboard carrier USS John C. Stennis
MILITARY: Sailor still hospitalized after fire aboard carrier
Only one sailor remained hospitalized Friday after 11 people were injured Wednesday when a Marine Corps jet fighter engine exploded, sending shrapnel out its exhaust and catching the plane on fire.
The only man still hospitalized suffered a severely broken leg as a result of debris from the explosion that occurred aboard the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis.
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Sailor still hospitalized after fire aboard carrier
Only one sailor remained hospitalized Friday after 11 people were injured Wednesday when a Marine Corps jet fighter engine exploded, sending shrapnel out its exhaust and catching the plane on fire.
The only man still hospitalized suffered a severely broken leg as a result of debris from the explosion that occurred aboard the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis.
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Sailor still hospitalized after fire aboard carrier
Friday, August 13, 2010
Wounded soldier heals with comedy
Wounded soldier heals with comedy
By Scott Huddleston - Express-News
It's open-mike night, when anyone with the guts to go on stage can try to be funny for five minutes.
Army Staff Sgt. Bobby Henline steps under the spotlights. Everyone can see his amputated arm, disfigured face and some of the burns that cover 38 percent of his body.
“Go Bobby!” a couple of his fans shout in the crowd at the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club. Henline starts his shtick by explaining his injuries — a source of curiosity for many in the audience.
“I went to Iraq four times. The last time was a real blast,” he deadpans.
On stage, he's the polar opposite of the soulful war vet who gives motivational talks to burn survivors and anyone who'll listen. As a comedian, his job is to make you laugh, and there are few boundaries.
read more here
Wounded soldier heals with comedy
By Scott Huddleston - Express-News
It's open-mike night, when anyone with the guts to go on stage can try to be funny for five minutes.
Army Staff Sgt. Bobby Henline steps under the spotlights. Everyone can see his amputated arm, disfigured face and some of the burns that cover 38 percent of his body.
“Go Bobby!” a couple of his fans shout in the crowd at the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club. Henline starts his shtick by explaining his injuries — a source of curiosity for many in the audience.
“I went to Iraq four times. The last time was a real blast,” he deadpans.
On stage, he's the polar opposite of the soulful war vet who gives motivational talks to burn survivors and anyone who'll listen. As a comedian, his job is to make you laugh, and there are few boundaries.
read more here
Wounded soldier heals with comedy
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
New program rebuilding faces of soldiers, veterans
New program rebuilding faces of soldiers, veterans
By MICHELLE ROBERTS (AP) – 2 hours ago
SAN ANTONIO — The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought a new kind of patient to the facial prothestics lab at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio: wounded warriors, who have recently suffered heavy burns and multiple traumas.
read more here
New program rebuilding faces of soldiers, veterans
By MICHELLE ROBERTS (AP) – 2 hours ago
SAN ANTONIO — The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought a new kind of patient to the facial prothestics lab at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio: wounded warriors, who have recently suffered heavy burns and multiple traumas.
read more here
New program rebuilding faces of soldiers, veterans
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Georgia fabric shields soldiers from burns
Georgia fabric shields soldiers
By Michael E. Kanell
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The difference between life and death, between third-degree burns and walking away whistling, between falling and fighting. When a burst of flame engulfs a soldier, his protection better be as close as his skin or he quickly becomes more casualty than combatant.
And in a war fought against rocket-propelled grenades and roadside bombs, the right defense can quickly turn a target back into an attacker.
“Four seconds is what they need to dismount a burning vehicle, to stay alive and to fight the enemy,” said Lt. Col. Mike Sloane of PEO Soldier, the U.S. Army’s acquisition organization. “It’s got to be scary to see a soldier, his uniform on fire then extinguishing itself — and the soldier continues to fight.”
To see how that can happen, you must follow a thread that leads roughly 7,000 miles from the combat zone to a tiny town 50 miles south of Atlanta.
It is in Zebulon where they are weaving protection.
read more here
Georgia fabric shields soldiers
By Michael E. Kanell
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The difference between life and death, between third-degree burns and walking away whistling, between falling and fighting. When a burst of flame engulfs a soldier, his protection better be as close as his skin or he quickly becomes more casualty than combatant.
And in a war fought against rocket-propelled grenades and roadside bombs, the right defense can quickly turn a target back into an attacker.
“Four seconds is what they need to dismount a burning vehicle, to stay alive and to fight the enemy,” said Lt. Col. Mike Sloane of PEO Soldier, the U.S. Army’s acquisition organization. “It’s got to be scary to see a soldier, his uniform on fire then extinguishing itself — and the soldier continues to fight.”
To see how that can happen, you must follow a thread that leads roughly 7,000 miles from the combat zone to a tiny town 50 miles south of Atlanta.
It is in Zebulon where they are weaving protection.
read more here
Georgia fabric shields soldiers
Monday, June 28, 2010
J.R. Martinez, wounded Iraq veteran, shines in All My Children
After surviving Iraq, Pine Valley's a breeze
Disfigured and nearly killed in a 2003 land-mine explosion, Army vet J.R. Martinez has become the soap opera world's most unlikely star with his role on 'All My Children.'
By Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times
June 26, 2010 5:54 p.m.
The police station set of "All My Children" buzzed as the cast and crew prepared for a scene. Sitting behind a desk in his officer's uniform all ready to go was J.R. Martinez, smiling as makeup and hair artists attended to actress Shannon Kane, who plays his partner on the ABC soap.
"One day I'll have to get a wig so I know what's it's like to be waited on," he said. "I never have to show up early like everyone else for hair and makeup. I'm camera-ready as soon as I arrive."
Martinez stands out in the glamorous cast of "All My Children," one of daytime's most enduring serials. His face, like much of his body, is badly burned and bears the marks of repeated skin grafts. His left eye slightly droops. His left ear is gone. His shaved head is heavily scarred. A distinctive line separates the smooth bridge of his nose from the burned tip.
Though he doesn't share the perfect hair and silky features of his costars, it is clear that somehow, Martinez, an Iraqi war veteran who was injured in 2003, fits in. He will be among the cast members participating in a salute to the 40-year-old drama during the Daytime Emmy Awards on Sunday night in Las Vegas.
read more here
After surviving Iraq
Disfigured and nearly killed in a 2003 land-mine explosion, Army vet J.R. Martinez has become the soap opera world's most unlikely star with his role on 'All My Children.'
By Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times
June 26, 2010 5:54 p.m.
The police station set of "All My Children" buzzed as the cast and crew prepared for a scene. Sitting behind a desk in his officer's uniform all ready to go was J.R. Martinez, smiling as makeup and hair artists attended to actress Shannon Kane, who plays his partner on the ABC soap.
"One day I'll have to get a wig so I know what's it's like to be waited on," he said. "I never have to show up early like everyone else for hair and makeup. I'm camera-ready as soon as I arrive."
Martinez stands out in the glamorous cast of "All My Children," one of daytime's most enduring serials. His face, like much of his body, is badly burned and bears the marks of repeated skin grafts. His left eye slightly droops. His left ear is gone. His shaved head is heavily scarred. A distinctive line separates the smooth bridge of his nose from the burned tip.
Though he doesn't share the perfect hair and silky features of his costars, it is clear that somehow, Martinez, an Iraqi war veteran who was injured in 2003, fits in. He will be among the cast members participating in a salute to the 40-year-old drama during the Daytime Emmy Awards on Sunday night in Las Vegas.
read more here
After surviving Iraq
Monday, October 19, 2009
Burned soldier portrait to show at Smithsonian
Matthew Mitchell via AP Matthew Mitchell's life-sized oil portrait of Sgt. Richard Yarosh will go on display at the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington later this month.
Burned soldier portrait to show at Smithsonian
By Michelle Roberts - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 19, 2009 17:43:52 EDT
SAN ANTONIO — Retired Army Sgt. Richard Yarosh has gotten used to the stares. His face is blanketed in knotty scar tissue. His nose tip is missing. His ears are gone, as is part of his right leg. His fingers are permanently bent and rigid.
All is the result of an explosion in Iraq that doused him in fuel and fire three years ago.
“I know people are curious,” he said. “They’ll stop in their tracks and look. I guess I can understand. I probably would have stared, too.”
Soon, a lot more people will be staring at Yarosh’s face but in a very different way: A life-sized oil painting of him will go on display at the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington later this month. The portrait, by Matthew Mitchell, is a finalist in the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, which recognizes modern portraiture at the gallery known for its collection of notable Americans.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_yarosh_smithsonian_portrait_101909/
also
Portrait Does Justice to a Soldier's Sacrifice
Andrea Stone
WASHINGTON (Oct. 23) – Arlene Coffman stared at the man in the painting. He had no ears, no nose, no eyebrows. Instead of smile lines by his eyes there was scar tissue. Tears welled in her eyes.
"It's incredible. It's hard to describe because it's so moving," said Coffman, 64, visiting here from Pebble Beach, Calif. "Most portraits bring emotions. This one is emotional in a different way."
go here for more
Portrait Does Justice to a Soldier's Sacrifice
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
VA let us down, says soldier’s mom
VA let us down, says soldier’s mom
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Sep 16, 2009 16:35:14 EDT
The mother of a severely wounded Army veteran choked back tears Wednesday as she told attendees of a seminar on veterans’ health care that she believes the government has let her and her son down.
“It is very sad this country has let us down so incredibly,” said Leslie Kammerdiener, mother and caregiver of Army Cpl. Kevin Kammerdiener, a 173rd Airborne Brigade soldier who suffered severe burns and brain injuries in a 2008 roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan.
A low point came earlier this year, Kammerdiener said, when her son indicated by hand movements that he wanted to hang himself. She said she called the Veterans Affairs Department asking for help because her son was suicidal; she waited days but got no return call.
She got help only after tracking down a doctor at a military event and pleading for help, she said.
Kammerdiener told her story at an Alexandria, Va., conference sponsored by the Military Officers Association of America and the U.S. Naval Institute that focused on what the government is doing and should be doing to help combat veterans with invisible wounds such as post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries.
Kammerdiener had high praise for the immediate care her son received for his burns at the Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas. But once her son was transferred, care began to erode, she said.
In a sign of what was to come, when her son arrived at VA’s polytrauma center in Tampa, Fla., on Labor Day weekend in 2008, the hospital had no medicine for him, no bed and no food for his feeding tube because they seemed to be unaware he was coming, she said, adding that her son went 30 hours without being fed.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/09/military_wounded_soldiermother_091609w/
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Sep 16, 2009 16:35:14 EDT
The mother of a severely wounded Army veteran choked back tears Wednesday as she told attendees of a seminar on veterans’ health care that she believes the government has let her and her son down.
“It is very sad this country has let us down so incredibly,” said Leslie Kammerdiener, mother and caregiver of Army Cpl. Kevin Kammerdiener, a 173rd Airborne Brigade soldier who suffered severe burns and brain injuries in a 2008 roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan.
A low point came earlier this year, Kammerdiener said, when her son indicated by hand movements that he wanted to hang himself. She said she called the Veterans Affairs Department asking for help because her son was suicidal; she waited days but got no return call.
She got help only after tracking down a doctor at a military event and pleading for help, she said.
Kammerdiener told her story at an Alexandria, Va., conference sponsored by the Military Officers Association of America and the U.S. Naval Institute that focused on what the government is doing and should be doing to help combat veterans with invisible wounds such as post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries.
Kammerdiener had high praise for the immediate care her son received for his burns at the Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas. But once her son was transferred, care began to erode, she said.
In a sign of what was to come, when her son arrived at VA’s polytrauma center in Tampa, Fla., on Labor Day weekend in 2008, the hospital had no medicine for him, no bed and no food for his feeding tube because they seemed to be unaware he was coming, she said, adding that her son went 30 hours without being fed.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/09/military_wounded_soldiermother_091609w/
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Girl burned by white phosphorus leaves Bagram
Girl burned by white phosphorus leaves Bagram
By Rahim Faiez - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jun 24, 2009 17:44:29 EDT
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan — A nurse fixed a black wig on Razia’s scarred and disfigured scalp before the 8-year-old took off around the emergency room to bid farewell to the staff who cared for her after white phosphorous scorched her head, face, neck and hands.
When Razia came to the U.S. military hospital four months ago, Capt. Christine Collins didn’t think she would make it out alive. On Wednesday, the little Afghan girl left this military hospital for an arduous journey to her village, a 50-mile drive from Bagram Air Base.
“I am fine, I want to go home,” Razia quietly told Collins and a group of other hospital staff who had come to see her off.
Wearing a pair of blue jeans and a pink-striped shirt, Razia was eager to see her mother — who awaited her at a cousin’s house deep in the countryside still rife with insurgents. The two have not seen each other since shells ripped through their home on March 14 just after breakfast, killing two of Razia’s sisters.
It’s unclear where the white phosphorus came from that disfigured Razia for life — burning her face, now marked with permanent scars. Razia’s father, Abdul Aziz, blames international forces since U.S., French and Afghan troops gathered outside his home just before the shells were fired. U.S and NATO troops use white phosphorus to illuminate targets, create smoke screens and destroy old bunkers, but say they don’t use it as a weapon.
A U.S. military spokeswoman with NATO’s security force said military officials can’t be certain whether it was their own round or an enemy round that hit Razia’s house.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/06/ap_burned_afghan_girl_062409/
By Rahim Faiez - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jun 24, 2009 17:44:29 EDT
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan — A nurse fixed a black wig on Razia’s scarred and disfigured scalp before the 8-year-old took off around the emergency room to bid farewell to the staff who cared for her after white phosphorous scorched her head, face, neck and hands.
When Razia came to the U.S. military hospital four months ago, Capt. Christine Collins didn’t think she would make it out alive. On Wednesday, the little Afghan girl left this military hospital for an arduous journey to her village, a 50-mile drive from Bagram Air Base.
“I am fine, I want to go home,” Razia quietly told Collins and a group of other hospital staff who had come to see her off.
Wearing a pair of blue jeans and a pink-striped shirt, Razia was eager to see her mother — who awaited her at a cousin’s house deep in the countryside still rife with insurgents. The two have not seen each other since shells ripped through their home on March 14 just after breakfast, killing two of Razia’s sisters.
It’s unclear where the white phosphorus came from that disfigured Razia for life — burning her face, now marked with permanent scars. Razia’s father, Abdul Aziz, blames international forces since U.S., French and Afghan troops gathered outside his home just before the shells were fired. U.S and NATO troops use white phosphorus to illuminate targets, create smoke screens and destroy old bunkers, but say they don’t use it as a weapon.
A U.S. military spokeswoman with NATO’s security force said military officials can’t be certain whether it was their own round or an enemy round that hit Razia’s house.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/06/ap_burned_afghan_girl_062409/
Friday, June 19, 2009
M-88 armored vehicle fire burns 3 Fort Stewart Soldiers
3 Ga. soldiers injured in Army vehicle fire
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
Associated Press
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Fort Stewart — Three Fort Stewart soldiers are being treated for injuries from an explosion inside an armored vehicle on the southeast Georgia Army post.
Fort Stewart spokesman Kevin Larson said Wednesday none of the injuries are life-threatening. One soldier was taken to the Augusta burn center with second-degree burns. The others were treated at Fort Stewart for minor burns and dehydration.
Larson said the soldiers were driving an M-88 armored vehicle on a tank trail when they heard a hissing sound, followed by an explosion inside the crew compartment. The blast threw one of the soldiers out of the vehicle.
The M-88 is an armored tow truck used to move tanks and other heavy vehicles.
The Army is investigating what caused the blast. The soldiers’ identities were not immediately released.
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
Associated Press
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Fort Stewart — Three Fort Stewart soldiers are being treated for injuries from an explosion inside an armored vehicle on the southeast Georgia Army post.
Fort Stewart spokesman Kevin Larson said Wednesday none of the injuries are life-threatening. One soldier was taken to the Augusta burn center with second-degree burns. The others were treated at Fort Stewart for minor burns and dehydration.
Larson said the soldiers were driving an M-88 armored vehicle on a tank trail when they heard a hissing sound, followed by an explosion inside the crew compartment. The blast threw one of the soldiers out of the vehicle.
The M-88 is an armored tow truck used to move tanks and other heavy vehicles.
The Army is investigating what caused the blast. The soldiers’ identities were not immediately released.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Police officers pull man from burning house
April 30, 2009
Police officers pull man from burning house
By MARK I. JOHNSON
Staff Writer
DAYTONA BEACH -- Steve Beres is the first to admit he is no firefighter.
"I would rather grab a guy with a gun on crack than fight a fire," the Daytona Beach deputy police chief said Wednesday afternoon.
However, just hours before, he and three of his officers braved flames and smoke to pull a 60-year-old man from his burning home.
Dean Frederick Sweeney suffered second-degree burns over 80 percent of his body when a lamp cord overheated, sparking a fire that engulfed the living room of his South Ridgewood Avenue home just before midnight Tuesday, police said.
Beres was on routine patrol when he said he saw smoke drifting through the streetlights. He investigated, eventually going door to door in the block, before seeing flames inside Sweeney's home.
When a neighbor told him it was likely Sweeney was inside, the officer began looking for a way in, but locked doors and heavy smoke and flames blocked his way.
"I could hear him yelling, 'Help me! Help me!" Beres recalled. "And I could see him through the flames."
go here for more
Police officers pull man from burning house
Police officers pull man from burning house
By MARK I. JOHNSON
Staff Writer
DAYTONA BEACH -- Steve Beres is the first to admit he is no firefighter.
"I would rather grab a guy with a gun on crack than fight a fire," the Daytona Beach deputy police chief said Wednesday afternoon.
However, just hours before, he and three of his officers braved flames and smoke to pull a 60-year-old man from his burning home.
Dean Frederick Sweeney suffered second-degree burns over 80 percent of his body when a lamp cord overheated, sparking a fire that engulfed the living room of his South Ridgewood Avenue home just before midnight Tuesday, police said.
Beres was on routine patrol when he said he saw smoke drifting through the streetlights. He investigated, eventually going door to door in the block, before seeing flames inside Sweeney's home.
When a neighbor told him it was likely Sweeney was inside, the officer began looking for a way in, but locked doors and heavy smoke and flames blocked his way.
"I could hear him yelling, 'Help me! Help me!" Beres recalled. "And I could see him through the flames."
go here for more
Police officers pull man from burning house
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