American Veterans Disabled For Life Memorial

American Veterans Disabled For Life Memorial. . , Each of you bears upon his body the permanent, honorable scars of dangerous service: service rendered in order that our great nation might continue to live according to the expressed will of its own citizens. , Dwight D. Eisenhower , , Before I conclude the subject of public justice, I cannot omit to mention the obligations this country is under, to that meritorious class of veteran non-commissioned officers and privates, who have been discharged for inability... Nothing could be a more melancholy and distressing sight, than to behold those who have shed their blood or lost their limbs in the service of their country... , George Washington , , There are life-threatening injuries to confront and surmount, life-changing disabilities to meet and master, and life-shaping experiences to make peace with and understand. , , For every tragic story of a life unraveled by military battle, there are a dozen tales of individuals who have managed to triumph over the harrowing experiences of war and ruin. , Jesse Brown , , We start by not thinking so much anymore about what you have lost. You must think about what you have left ... and what you can do with it. , , When you're young, you're invincible. You're immortal. I thought I'd come back. Perhaps I wouldn't, there was that thought, too, but I had this feeling that I would come back. Underneath that feeling, there was another, that maybe I wouldn't be quite the same, but I felt I'd make it back. , Michael A. Naranjo , , Faith that manifests itself in a ferocious determination to take the next step--the one that everyone else says is impossible. , , In the end, what gets people through a physical or emotional crisis is not new technology or medication. , , Those things can help, of course. But it's faith that gives you the strength to endure -- faith that won't allow you to give up; faith that manifests itself in a ferocious determination to take the next step -- the one that everyone else says is impossible. , Bob Dole , , It's possible for a man to lose half of his physical being and still become whole. , , Before I lost my limbs I was only half a man. Now I've developed some humility. I can look at the average person and understand him, where before I looked only at myself. , Theodore Strong Jr. , , I am always proud of my service. , , Yes, I wished things would have worked out a little better for me but I did come home alive and had a fairly successful life. , George Robert Sullivan , , How is a life replaced -- the companionship, nurturing, love and support of a husband and father. , , We were totally unprepared and were devastated by years of illness. , Joan McCarthy , , In war, there are no unwounded soldiers. , , I shall recall with respect those who fought with me and were scarred by bullets, left limbless by bombs. I shall recall with humility those who were stronger and braver than me. And I shall recall -- with celebration and joy -- our nation's heritage of selfless sacrifice and commitment to the common good. , Billy E. Kirby , , The strongest ties between human beings are not cemented in safety, luxury, and comfort. It is the sharing together of the scanty covering, the insufficient shelter, drinking from the same cup, eating from the same plate. , , the dividing by a hungry soldier with a hungrier comrade the last morsel of meat or the remnant of a cracker; the binding up of each other's wounds, the lending of courage from one heart to another: these are what created the strongest bonds between human beings. , , I have a purpose in life, and that's been to help other military families through some of what I had to go through. If I had to go through it myself in order to help others, I'm okay with that. , Roberto Barrera , , My wife means everything to me, and she's also been my therapy. They got me to talk about it. People didn't understand that it is so painful to discuss. As I'm talking to you right now there are tears running down my face. , , Since the war, I've been confined to a wheelchair and have tried to live a good life. However, I relive the war every day. , Dean Winters , , I felt a special compassion for these young men with torn-up faces. The wounds one could see were often less severe than the psychological injuries they brought with them. My heart went out to each of them. , Martha Cameron , ,