thedrifter
08-14-06, 06:48 PM
Reporting for duty: Just days after a life-threatening accident, Marine Rob Holzinger could be headed back to Iraq
JUDY FITZMAURICE, Staff Writer
Rob Holzinger is bound and determined to return to the Middle East. And while it's astounding that he is so intent on serving a third tour overseas, it's even more impressive considering that just two weeks ago, he lay unconscious in a hospital bed.
Holzinger - a sergeant in the Marines - had been home on leave and his parents, Bob and Gloria Holzinger of rural Huntington, had planned a going away party for him on July 29. About two hours before the party, the 28-year-old was on his way back from his cousin's house just a half mile or so down the road when the dirt bike he was riding struck a culvert and flipped. Holzinger suffered a severe head injury and was airlifted to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne.
Holzinger was unable to communicate and was confined to his hospital bed for the first few days following the accident, and most people thought his desire to return to the Marines and the Middle East had been dampened. But Holzinger made a remarkable recovery, amazing both his parents and medical personnel caring for him.
"His Marine training kicked in," his mother said, adding that he was determined to return to the Middle East with his unit, Apache Company, 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division.
Holzinger was moved to the rehabilitation center at the hospital on Aug. 3 and, miraculously, was released from the hospital Aug. 11.
Seven of Holzinger's marine buddies had planned to see him off when he left Camp Lejeune. N.C., for his third tour in a couple of weeks. But the accident forced a change of plans and three of them were able to rearrange their schedules so they could come to Indiana to visit him in the hospital. They arrived Friday and, because he was released that evening, got to spend time with him at home instead.
Holzinger and his buddies - Patrick Barber from Iowa, Kyle Wilson from Arizona, and Joe Jackson from Noblesville - had served two tours together in Iraq.
Holzinger was the only one from his platoon that had re-enlisted after returning stateside a year ago in April, but the fact that seven of his Marine buddies had planned to see him off on his third tour speaks to the bond they share.
"We're all real close," Barber said as the three looked at pictures and reminisced about their time together in Iraq.
"These guys are like my brothers," Holzinger added. "We spent a lot of time together - good times and bad times."
Holzinger's Marine buddies knew how serious his injuries were after getting a call from his mother.
"I could barely understand what she was saying," Wilson recalled. "She said he was in a wreck and that he was not doing well."
Holzinger remembers riding the dirt bike that Saturday but doesn't recall much about the accident. He was in intensive care at the hospital for about five days and spent the next week or so in rehabilitation, doing everything in his power to get well.
"It was the fastest recovery they've had," he said. "It's a pretty intensive program. I started with communication, then motor skills, the doing stuff on my own. I went through the rehab steps as quickly as possible."
Holzinger's intensity toward his rehabilitation wasn't just about himself.
"I need to get back to my guys," he said of his platoon.
The "guys" are the 35 young men he spent the last year training.
"These are your boys - they're a product of you," he explained. "You care for them like they're part of your family and you wouldn't want anything to happen to them. It would be heart-wrenching for them to go over without me."
Holzinger is amazed at how men from all walks of life can become a cohesive unit in the military.
"They've all got their own personalities and are all from different backgrounds, but they come together and it works," he said.
Holzinger was a little surprised to hear from some of the "younger" guys after his accident.
"They wanted to see how I was doing and wanted to know if I was coming with them," he said.
Holzinger's doctor had him go through a series of tests before releasing him from the hospital Friday and had some reservations about his return to the military.
"He's a little reluctant to have me go back to Camp Lejeune and back into combat," Holzinger said. "But I called my commanders and told them I'll do everything in my power to get there."
Holzinger knows he faces an intensive testing program with military doctors at Camp Lejeune but he's up to the challenge. He also realizes they might not give him the green light to return to combat but he's OK with that.
"They know I would never do anything to endanger my troops," he said.
Ellie
JUDY FITZMAURICE, Staff Writer
Rob Holzinger is bound and determined to return to the Middle East. And while it's astounding that he is so intent on serving a third tour overseas, it's even more impressive considering that just two weeks ago, he lay unconscious in a hospital bed.
Holzinger - a sergeant in the Marines - had been home on leave and his parents, Bob and Gloria Holzinger of rural Huntington, had planned a going away party for him on July 29. About two hours before the party, the 28-year-old was on his way back from his cousin's house just a half mile or so down the road when the dirt bike he was riding struck a culvert and flipped. Holzinger suffered a severe head injury and was airlifted to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne.
Holzinger was unable to communicate and was confined to his hospital bed for the first few days following the accident, and most people thought his desire to return to the Marines and the Middle East had been dampened. But Holzinger made a remarkable recovery, amazing both his parents and medical personnel caring for him.
"His Marine training kicked in," his mother said, adding that he was determined to return to the Middle East with his unit, Apache Company, 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division.
Holzinger was moved to the rehabilitation center at the hospital on Aug. 3 and, miraculously, was released from the hospital Aug. 11.
Seven of Holzinger's marine buddies had planned to see him off when he left Camp Lejeune. N.C., for his third tour in a couple of weeks. But the accident forced a change of plans and three of them were able to rearrange their schedules so they could come to Indiana to visit him in the hospital. They arrived Friday and, because he was released that evening, got to spend time with him at home instead.
Holzinger and his buddies - Patrick Barber from Iowa, Kyle Wilson from Arizona, and Joe Jackson from Noblesville - had served two tours together in Iraq.
Holzinger was the only one from his platoon that had re-enlisted after returning stateside a year ago in April, but the fact that seven of his Marine buddies had planned to see him off on his third tour speaks to the bond they share.
"We're all real close," Barber said as the three looked at pictures and reminisced about their time together in Iraq.
"These guys are like my brothers," Holzinger added. "We spent a lot of time together - good times and bad times."
Holzinger's Marine buddies knew how serious his injuries were after getting a call from his mother.
"I could barely understand what she was saying," Wilson recalled. "She said he was in a wreck and that he was not doing well."
Holzinger remembers riding the dirt bike that Saturday but doesn't recall much about the accident. He was in intensive care at the hospital for about five days and spent the next week or so in rehabilitation, doing everything in his power to get well.
"It was the fastest recovery they've had," he said. "It's a pretty intensive program. I started with communication, then motor skills, the doing stuff on my own. I went through the rehab steps as quickly as possible."
Holzinger's intensity toward his rehabilitation wasn't just about himself.
"I need to get back to my guys," he said of his platoon.
The "guys" are the 35 young men he spent the last year training.
"These are your boys - they're a product of you," he explained. "You care for them like they're part of your family and you wouldn't want anything to happen to them. It would be heart-wrenching for them to go over without me."
Holzinger is amazed at how men from all walks of life can become a cohesive unit in the military.
"They've all got their own personalities and are all from different backgrounds, but they come together and it works," he said.
Holzinger was a little surprised to hear from some of the "younger" guys after his accident.
"They wanted to see how I was doing and wanted to know if I was coming with them," he said.
Holzinger's doctor had him go through a series of tests before releasing him from the hospital Friday and had some reservations about his return to the military.
"He's a little reluctant to have me go back to Camp Lejeune and back into combat," Holzinger said. "But I called my commanders and told them I'll do everything in my power to get there."
Holzinger knows he faces an intensive testing program with military doctors at Camp Lejeune but he's up to the challenge. He also realizes they might not give him the green light to return to combat but he's OK with that.
"They know I would never do anything to endanger my troops," he said.
Ellie