thedrifter
08-07-06, 07:03 AM
Pendleton to do 'the right thing' for wounded
New barracks will assist Marines, sailors in recovery
By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
August 7, 2006
The first West Coast barracks for Marines and sailors wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan will open Thursday at Camp Pendleton.
Much more than a roof and walls, the Wounded Warrior Center is designed to give troops a sanctuary where they can recuperate while planning for the next step in their lives.
Base officials said the center, less than a quarter-mile from the Camp Pendleton hospital, could accommodate 26 service members. They expect half of its rooms to be filled by next week.
“This is a way we are going to give back to the Marine Corps and the civilian communities,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Lehnert, commander of the seven bases that make up Marine Corps Installations West.
The goal, he said, is to help wounded service members return to active-duty status or to assist them in transitioning to the civilian world.
“We are going to do the right thing,” Lehnert said. “This is exciting.”
And needed.
Since March 2003, nearly 19,000 U.S. troops have been wounded in Iraq alone. The Marines and the Army have suffered the most deaths and injuries during the Iraq war because they handle the bulk of ground-based operations.
Col. Timothy Maxwell, who runs the Wounded Warrior Center at Camp Lejeune, N.C., said that Camp Pendleton was getting “a wonderful facility” that would make a big difference in the lives of service members and their loved ones.
Until Camp Lejeune officials began operating their center in September, Maxwell said, wounded Marines and sailors convalesced at home or in the often empty barracks of their deployed units.
In October 2004, Maxwell himself was gravely wounded when shrapnel from enemy mortar cut into his brain. He remembers the physical anguish and mental isolation he felt during the recovery period. At that point, Maxwell started thinking that it would be good to have wounded or formerly injured service members help one another in a centralized location. His idea was eventually developed into Maxwell Hall, which is a part of the center.
Lejune officials initially established six rooms for the program; now they have 40. Of the center's 47 staff members, only one was not wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The Lejune staff members coordinate doctors' appointments and help patients wade through paperwork and to figure out what they want to do next.
“This is more than a barracks – we are a unit. We can't deploy and we can't fight, but we are still Marines,” Maxwell said. “We have morning formations, though the Marines don't stand at attention because a lot of them can't stand.”
Camp Lejeune's program has grown because its commanders supported the center. But it was a tough sell at first, Maxwell said.
Originally, he remembers, some commanders objected to the idea of having their Marines cared for in barracks not under their supervision.
“And they were right. I know that I wouldn't want my Marines being cared for my someone else,” said Maxwell, a former infantry officer. “But once they saw our barracks, they left as believers.”
That's because unlike traditional barracks, the center has ramps instead of steps, hand-bars along its walls and, most important, staff members know first-hand the guilt, the fear and the frustrations that arise during the recovery process.
Maxwell predicted that Camp Pendleton's center would make converts, too.
“We are really excited about the new barracks” there, he said. “They will start out so far ahead of us because they (have learned from) the mistakes that we made.”
Rick Rogers: (760) 476-8212; rick.rogers@uniontrib.com
Ellie
New barracks will assist Marines, sailors in recovery
By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
August 7, 2006
The first West Coast barracks for Marines and sailors wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan will open Thursday at Camp Pendleton.
Much more than a roof and walls, the Wounded Warrior Center is designed to give troops a sanctuary where they can recuperate while planning for the next step in their lives.
Base officials said the center, less than a quarter-mile from the Camp Pendleton hospital, could accommodate 26 service members. They expect half of its rooms to be filled by next week.
“This is a way we are going to give back to the Marine Corps and the civilian communities,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Lehnert, commander of the seven bases that make up Marine Corps Installations West.
The goal, he said, is to help wounded service members return to active-duty status or to assist them in transitioning to the civilian world.
“We are going to do the right thing,” Lehnert said. “This is exciting.”
And needed.
Since March 2003, nearly 19,000 U.S. troops have been wounded in Iraq alone. The Marines and the Army have suffered the most deaths and injuries during the Iraq war because they handle the bulk of ground-based operations.
Col. Timothy Maxwell, who runs the Wounded Warrior Center at Camp Lejeune, N.C., said that Camp Pendleton was getting “a wonderful facility” that would make a big difference in the lives of service members and their loved ones.
Until Camp Lejeune officials began operating their center in September, Maxwell said, wounded Marines and sailors convalesced at home or in the often empty barracks of their deployed units.
In October 2004, Maxwell himself was gravely wounded when shrapnel from enemy mortar cut into his brain. He remembers the physical anguish and mental isolation he felt during the recovery period. At that point, Maxwell started thinking that it would be good to have wounded or formerly injured service members help one another in a centralized location. His idea was eventually developed into Maxwell Hall, which is a part of the center.
Lejune officials initially established six rooms for the program; now they have 40. Of the center's 47 staff members, only one was not wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The Lejune staff members coordinate doctors' appointments and help patients wade through paperwork and to figure out what they want to do next.
“This is more than a barracks – we are a unit. We can't deploy and we can't fight, but we are still Marines,” Maxwell said. “We have morning formations, though the Marines don't stand at attention because a lot of them can't stand.”
Camp Lejeune's program has grown because its commanders supported the center. But it was a tough sell at first, Maxwell said.
Originally, he remembers, some commanders objected to the idea of having their Marines cared for in barracks not under their supervision.
“And they were right. I know that I wouldn't want my Marines being cared for my someone else,” said Maxwell, a former infantry officer. “But once they saw our barracks, they left as believers.”
That's because unlike traditional barracks, the center has ramps instead of steps, hand-bars along its walls and, most important, staff members know first-hand the guilt, the fear and the frustrations that arise during the recovery process.
Maxwell predicted that Camp Pendleton's center would make converts, too.
“We are really excited about the new barracks” there, he said. “They will start out so far ahead of us because they (have learned from) the mistakes that we made.”
Rick Rogers: (760) 476-8212; rick.rogers@uniontrib.com
Ellie