thedrifter
06-04-08, 11:19 AM
Coon Rapids Marine recovering from injuries
Tuesday, 03 June 2008
by Peter Bodley
Managing editor
ABC Newspapers
Gabriel Morse worked this Memorial Day, but he still remembered fallen veterans from past and present wars in which the United States has been involved.
Morse, a Coon Rapids resident, is a lance corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps, currently based at Fort Snelling.
But that’s only because Morse is a casualty of the war in Iraq and he expects to return to that country once he is fully recovered.
“Memorial Day is a time to remember the men and women who have given their lives for us to be able to live our lives today,” Morse said.
The 2005 Coon Rapids High School graduate joined the Marines right after high school following several family members into the military.
“Different people did not think I could do it and I wanted to prove them wrong,” Morse said.
And he had no qualms about going into the Marines, even though he knew it would be likely that he would be sent to the war zone in Iraq or Afghanistan.
“I was looking forward to it,” Morse said.
Morse did his basic training at the Marine base in San Diego, Calif., then trained as an infantry machine gunner at the School of Infantry, also in California.
Early in February 2006, Morse knew that his battalion would be sent to Iraq that summer and the Marines underwent training, including live fire situations, at Camp Lejeune, N.C., he said.
Morse and the 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines arrived in Iraq for their tour of duty in July 2006 and were based in Saqlawiyah, near Fallujah.
“We went on all sorts of missions, including raids, patrols and convoys,” Morse said.
While Fallujah was no longer the hot spot it was earlier in the Iraq war, there were still plenty of insurgents in the area and he and his unit came under fire many times, according to Morse.
There were also IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) that the convoys had to deal with, Morse said.
“I suffered some minor concussions from those,” he said.
But in February 2007, soon after he had been promoted from private first class to lance corporal, Morse and his unit, acting as a forward observation post on a bridge, were ambushed, coming under extremely heavy gun fire and hand grenades.
“There were five of us in the unit and all of us were injured, but we all survived,” Morse said.
Morse, himself, was struck by shrapnel from hand grenades on the back of his body from the waist down to his shin.
He was first evacuated to a hospital near Baghdad, then to a hospital on a U.S. base in Germany.
Morse has had to undergo multiple surgeries to repair the shrapnel wounds, including a half-dollar size, six-inch deep hole in his backside, he said.
In addition, he also had to have exploratory operations to determine if any of his internal organs had been affected.
None were, but he did have to have a loop colostomy for six months, Morse said.
Morse has been back in the United States for more than a year and is working in the armory at Fort Snelling.
But Morse is still on what is called a medical hold and even though he has recovered from his physical injuries, he is being treated for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) at the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis.
“It happens to a lot of soldiers,” he said.
Morse suffers from nightmares, flashbacks, hyper vigilance and is very cautious, he said.
“It’s like being stressed all the time,” Morse said.
Morse expects to continue to have nightmares and other PTSD symptoms the rest of his life, but hopes that it can be controlled.
But Morse, who signed up for the Marines for four years, has no regrets, he said.
“It’s part of the job and I am proud of what I am doing for my country and the people of this nation,” Morse said.
And he said he is looking forward to the opportunity to return to the war zone when that time arrives.
Morse has received the Purple Heart, which is awarded to military personnel who have been killed or injured in battle.
The fact that Morse was able to be awarded the Purple Heart personally means that “they missed,” he said.
Earlier this month, Morse received a $2,000 Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund grant.
Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund is a statewide fund-raising initiative by the citizens of Minnesota for Minnesota military personnel and their families.
The organization raises money to provide cash grants as a “thank you” to all Minnesota military personnel who have served in a combat zone since September 2001.
Since it was launched in August 2005, MMAF has raised $6 million, making it the largest organization of its kind in the nation (and the only state in the nation to have a statewide fund-raising initiative of this type).
To date, it has distributed 6,500 grants totaling $4 million.
With a goal of more than 90 percent of collected funds going directly to eligible Minnesota armed forces, MMAF seeks to show troops how much Minnesotans appreciate and respect their service to our country.
Ellie
Tuesday, 03 June 2008
by Peter Bodley
Managing editor
ABC Newspapers
Gabriel Morse worked this Memorial Day, but he still remembered fallen veterans from past and present wars in which the United States has been involved.
Morse, a Coon Rapids resident, is a lance corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps, currently based at Fort Snelling.
But that’s only because Morse is a casualty of the war in Iraq and he expects to return to that country once he is fully recovered.
“Memorial Day is a time to remember the men and women who have given their lives for us to be able to live our lives today,” Morse said.
The 2005 Coon Rapids High School graduate joined the Marines right after high school following several family members into the military.
“Different people did not think I could do it and I wanted to prove them wrong,” Morse said.
And he had no qualms about going into the Marines, even though he knew it would be likely that he would be sent to the war zone in Iraq or Afghanistan.
“I was looking forward to it,” Morse said.
Morse did his basic training at the Marine base in San Diego, Calif., then trained as an infantry machine gunner at the School of Infantry, also in California.
Early in February 2006, Morse knew that his battalion would be sent to Iraq that summer and the Marines underwent training, including live fire situations, at Camp Lejeune, N.C., he said.
Morse and the 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines arrived in Iraq for their tour of duty in July 2006 and were based in Saqlawiyah, near Fallujah.
“We went on all sorts of missions, including raids, patrols and convoys,” Morse said.
While Fallujah was no longer the hot spot it was earlier in the Iraq war, there were still plenty of insurgents in the area and he and his unit came under fire many times, according to Morse.
There were also IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) that the convoys had to deal with, Morse said.
“I suffered some minor concussions from those,” he said.
But in February 2007, soon after he had been promoted from private first class to lance corporal, Morse and his unit, acting as a forward observation post on a bridge, were ambushed, coming under extremely heavy gun fire and hand grenades.
“There were five of us in the unit and all of us were injured, but we all survived,” Morse said.
Morse, himself, was struck by shrapnel from hand grenades on the back of his body from the waist down to his shin.
He was first evacuated to a hospital near Baghdad, then to a hospital on a U.S. base in Germany.
Morse has had to undergo multiple surgeries to repair the shrapnel wounds, including a half-dollar size, six-inch deep hole in his backside, he said.
In addition, he also had to have exploratory operations to determine if any of his internal organs had been affected.
None were, but he did have to have a loop colostomy for six months, Morse said.
Morse has been back in the United States for more than a year and is working in the armory at Fort Snelling.
But Morse is still on what is called a medical hold and even though he has recovered from his physical injuries, he is being treated for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) at the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis.
“It happens to a lot of soldiers,” he said.
Morse suffers from nightmares, flashbacks, hyper vigilance and is very cautious, he said.
“It’s like being stressed all the time,” Morse said.
Morse expects to continue to have nightmares and other PTSD symptoms the rest of his life, but hopes that it can be controlled.
But Morse, who signed up for the Marines for four years, has no regrets, he said.
“It’s part of the job and I am proud of what I am doing for my country and the people of this nation,” Morse said.
And he said he is looking forward to the opportunity to return to the war zone when that time arrives.
Morse has received the Purple Heart, which is awarded to military personnel who have been killed or injured in battle.
The fact that Morse was able to be awarded the Purple Heart personally means that “they missed,” he said.
Earlier this month, Morse received a $2,000 Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund grant.
Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund is a statewide fund-raising initiative by the citizens of Minnesota for Minnesota military personnel and their families.
The organization raises money to provide cash grants as a “thank you” to all Minnesota military personnel who have served in a combat zone since September 2001.
Since it was launched in August 2005, MMAF has raised $6 million, making it the largest organization of its kind in the nation (and the only state in the nation to have a statewide fund-raising initiative of this type).
To date, it has distributed 6,500 grants totaling $4 million.
With a goal of more than 90 percent of collected funds going directly to eligible Minnesota armed forces, MMAF seeks to show troops how much Minnesotans appreciate and respect their service to our country.
Ellie