thedrifter
03-11-07, 01:47 PM
Chaplain carries on mission of hope
By MARION CALLAHAN
phillyBurbs.com
Army Chaplain Roger Bryan VanPelt's mission is about giving hope.
He works beside injured troops, many of whom are awakening to the reality that they've lost a leg, an arm or their eyesight. It's VanPelt's mission to remind them just how much they have left.
He prays with them. And they hope — together.
With Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington mired in controversy, VanPelt is quick to make something clear: “There's another side to the story of the injured soldier. In the news, you don't hear about the overcoming spirit our soldiers and Marines have.”
The Perkasie man works at Brooke Army Medical in San Antonio, Texas. It houses the Army's only burn unit and is one of the busiest military treatment facilities for amputees and those seriously wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We have traumatic amputations of all kinds. We have people missing parts of their heads walking around here. I've seen just about everything blown off. ... And as slow as progress comes, they keep going,” VanPelt said.
At Brooke, he met a Marine with burns covering 96 percent of his body.
When VanPelt met the soldier two years ago, he could move only his eyes. He visited him every day, praying with him and his family. The soldier never complained. His hands and one of his feet had been blown off.
VanPelt took a leave. Months later, when he returned to the hospital, he saw the Marine in therapy trying to walk on the balls of his feet.
“When I came back, I didn't expect he'd still be alive. He saw me and said, "Where have you been?' He was getting ready to spend the weekend away from the hospital with his family. That was so meaningful,” VanPelt said. “He's our poster child for hope and the care this hospital has given to service members.
“Hope is what they need when progress is slow. I tell them, "The only way out of here is going forward.' I say that because some guys might be afraid of the future, tired of where they are at or discouraged to have to face so many more surgeries. That's where faith comes in. Faith in God, I say, is working for their good.”
Marion Callahan can be reached at 215-345-3166 or mcallahan@phillyBurbs.com.
March 11, 2007 6:11 AM
Ellie
By MARION CALLAHAN
phillyBurbs.com
Army Chaplain Roger Bryan VanPelt's mission is about giving hope.
He works beside injured troops, many of whom are awakening to the reality that they've lost a leg, an arm or their eyesight. It's VanPelt's mission to remind them just how much they have left.
He prays with them. And they hope — together.
With Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington mired in controversy, VanPelt is quick to make something clear: “There's another side to the story of the injured soldier. In the news, you don't hear about the overcoming spirit our soldiers and Marines have.”
The Perkasie man works at Brooke Army Medical in San Antonio, Texas. It houses the Army's only burn unit and is one of the busiest military treatment facilities for amputees and those seriously wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We have traumatic amputations of all kinds. We have people missing parts of their heads walking around here. I've seen just about everything blown off. ... And as slow as progress comes, they keep going,” VanPelt said.
At Brooke, he met a Marine with burns covering 96 percent of his body.
When VanPelt met the soldier two years ago, he could move only his eyes. He visited him every day, praying with him and his family. The soldier never complained. His hands and one of his feet had been blown off.
VanPelt took a leave. Months later, when he returned to the hospital, he saw the Marine in therapy trying to walk on the balls of his feet.
“When I came back, I didn't expect he'd still be alive. He saw me and said, "Where have you been?' He was getting ready to spend the weekend away from the hospital with his family. That was so meaningful,” VanPelt said. “He's our poster child for hope and the care this hospital has given to service members.
“Hope is what they need when progress is slow. I tell them, "The only way out of here is going forward.' I say that because some guys might be afraid of the future, tired of where they are at or discouraged to have to face so many more surgeries. That's where faith comes in. Faith in God, I say, is working for their good.”
Marion Callahan can be reached at 215-345-3166 or mcallahan@phillyBurbs.com.
March 11, 2007 6:11 AM
Ellie