Posted by Robyn Mincher
, DCoE Strategic Communications
on February 16, 2012
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Marine Sgt. Marshall Kennedy, with his wife Chelsie, received his second Purple Heart Medal for wounds suffered in combat at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in June 2011. (Photo courtesy of GuardOnline)
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At the Military Health System Conference, two recovering service members and their wives sat across from an audience of military health professionals. Typically, the dialogue between the two would be dominated by the latter, as they explain a treatment plan; what to expect during recovery; and how to cope. Yet this time, it was the wounded warriors and their spouses providing important information and openly sharing their personal experiences.
During the “Experiences of Wounded, Ill or Injured Warriors” panel, I listened to Marine Sgt. Marshall Kennedy, his wife Chelsie, Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician 1st Class Zachary Waskel, and his wife Jamie, share what it was like to sustain an injury during combat and receive treatment, and the spouses’ challenges during that difficult time.
“The flight to [Joint Base] Andrews was the hardest part,” said Kennedy, an amputee who was injured in Afghanistan last year when he stepped on an improvised explosive device (IED). “It was a MAC [Military Airlift Command] flight. There were families on the plane with wounded guys strapped to beds.”