Posted on 03/20/2004 8:54:12 PM PST by SwinneySwitch
America marked its one-year anniversary since coalition troops went to war with Iraq Friday.
At Brooke Army Medical Center, many injured soldiers were reflecting on a year that brought many changes.
Specialist Jose Martinez is not a doctor but every day, he arrives at BAMC to make unofficial rounds.
“When I was over there, never thought I’d be doing the things I’m doing today at all, that's how life changes,” Martinez said.
Martinez is only 20-years-old, as a warrior, he was one of thousands who stood on the front lines of war exactly a year ago.
“A lot went through my head then. It was just a bunch of not knowing if I’d make it back home, to be with my family,” Martinez said.
He did make it home, but a little different than before.
Just two and a half weeks into the war, Martinez’s humvee hit a landmine.
“I had received, as you can see, third degree burns on my face, my arms and legs,” he said.
Now, as he awaits his 24th surgery he's tackled a task he never imagined last March 19, aiding the spirits of fellow injured soldiers.
“In some sense, you could say everyone's a walking miracle that's come back from there, regardless if you're burned or orthopedic. Everybody that's alive today is lucky to be here,” Martinez said.
And that, he says, plus the belief that their fight improved lives, makes the pain a little more bearable.
“I know that they were happy to see us there to help them to fight for them, and seeing how it is now, yeah, it was well worth it.”
In the past year, 570 U.S. troops have died in combat.
About 75 percent of those deaths came after President Bush declared an end to official combat.
brichie@kens5.com
"Admiral Kelly, Captain Card, officers and sailors of the USS Abraham Lincoln, my fellow Americans, major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed.
And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country."
Have difficulty understanding plain English, Brooke??
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