'YOU JUST DRIVE ON' (Veterans in rehab)

NY Post ^ | December 11, 2007 | RALPH PETERS

[neverdem]

FORT SAM HOUSTON, SAN ANTONIO

WATCHING Army Staff Sgt. William Corp work out with a boogie-board on the wave-rider in the rehab center, I couldn't help thinking of the best line from a bad film, "Apocalypse Now":

"Charlie don't surf."

Well, maybe the Viet Cong didn't ride the waves, but our latest generation of severely wounded veterans do. Recovering from the loss of his right leg in a roadside-bomb attack in Iraq, Staff Sgt. Corp ran through his rehab routine - then started doing somersaults in the pressure-generated waves.

It's no luxury. A workout in those roiling waters is exhausting, building muscles back up and helping those who've lost limbs re-master their sense of balance. It's a challenging, innovative regimen.

And yes, it's fun - but fun is vital to healthy rehab. Lt.-Col. Jennifer Menetrez, MD, the director of the Center for the Intrepid for our wounded warriors, argued for the wave-rider's installation. It was a stroke of genius.

Lt.-Col. Menetrez is a story in herself - a Karen Allen look-alike (Remember the hottie from "Animal House"?), she's a Wellesley grad who...

--snip--

We were standing in a hallway just outside the rehab gym, where amputees were sweating through an exercise class. Looking in their direction, the lieutenant colonel said, "We consider our patients national treasures."

And they are.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

You can donate to the Warrior and Family Support Center project via credit card by phone at 1-888- 343-HERO or at ReturningHeroesHome.org.

To give by mail, send your donations to:

Returning Heroes Home

P.O. Box 202194

Dallas, TX 75320-2194

Checks should be made out to Returning Heroes Home, Inc. This is a nonprofit 501c3 endeavor; all donations are tax-deductible.

All contributions, in any amount, will help our wounded warriors. Please give to those who gave so much.

[Atlas Sneezed]

I couldn’t help thinking of the best line from a bad film, “Apocalypse Now”:

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“Bad”? Opinions may differ, but that was and is a rather well-regarded film.