BY JONAS BEALS
It was 5:45 a.m. in Alaska when Angie Pearce got a phone call from Baghdad. The person on the other end told her that her husband had been wounded in action, but was OK. He had only a little neck pain.
She got another call three hours later. Her husband was still doing fine. The brain surgery had gone well.
"I kind of lost it at that point," she said.
When she finally saw her husband in a Bethesda, Md., hospital four days later, he was definitely not doing well.
"They pretty much gave him no hope of survival," she said. "They told me he was blind."
Two months after he arrived in Baghdad, Army Staff Sgt. Brian Pearce was wounded when his Humvee was hit by an Improvised Explosive Device. Shrapnel pierced the back of his head and penetrated his occipital lobe. He was the only person injured in the attack.
Angie Pearce later learned that Brian's heart had stopped beating at one point after the attack, but he was resuscitated. Surgery and lengthy stays in intensive care followed.
He eventually made it to McGuire Veterans Affairs Hospital in Richmond. He regained full consciousness 60 days after the explosion.
His wife was by his side the whole time. Their two children--Logan, now 10, and Jordan, now 11--were living with a friend back in Alaska.
That was in December of 2006. Brian Pearce was 36. He's 39 now--still learning to live with a disability and the psychological trauma of his experience in Iraq.
His family is with him in Mechanicsville, where they have support from the VA and Families of the Wounded--a group of generous veterans who know what Brian Pearce is going through.
Tomorrow, he will be honored along with two other families by the Families of the Wounded Fund. The black-tie event will be held at the National Museum of the Marine Corps and features a speech by Gen. James Mattis, commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command.
FINDING NEEDED SUPPORT
The Pearce family is grateful for the continued support they've received from Families of the Wounded over the years.
It hasn't been easy. Brian Pearce is still getting extensive outpatient therapy at McGuire.
"If you were to look at him and you didn't know he had been to Iraq, you would think he was completely normal," Angie Pearce said. "People don't realize that just because someone looks normal, it doesn't mean their life is normal.
"It's been tough. He's finding out what his new normal is. Every day is different."
With her husband unable to work, Angie has considered moving the family back home to southern Ohio.
"Everyone in this situation asks themselves: 'What should I do after my spouse has been wounded?'" she said. "Moving home and having that help is wonderful, but my husband needed the support of the VA. I didn't want to take him away from what he's familiar with. The people here know best how to help us."
She said that her family can get by thanks to their military stipend and the generous $6,000 donation from Families of the Wounded.
"It wasn't just the donation," she said. "They've been there if we had any questions. I can pick up the phone day or night and call any one of the members and they'll help us out.
"They've been there and they understand. Brian can relate to them."
LOOKING TO HELP OTHERS
Doug Horstman, Greater Fredericksburg chairman of Families of the Wounded, said the fund has helped more than 200 families since the nonprofit organization was founded in 2005. All of the donations are used to support families caring for wounded soldiers.
"We focus on families coming into the McGuire Medical Center in Richmond because it is one of only four VA hospitals in the nation designed to treat brain and spinal cord injuries," Horstman said. "These families come from all over the nation."
Horstman, like the Pearce family, is looking forward to tomorrow's reception. He sees it as an opportunity to bring attention to the families affected most by the war. He also hopes to raise money and support to help more families.
"It's an opportunity for our region to contribute significantly to the fund," he said. "It's a timely event with the situation in Afghanistan. We're gearing up for what could be increased numbers of families coming in."
Beyond tomorrow night's honors, Brian Pearce looks forward to the day when he can go back to school and spend his time doing volunteer work.
"He has come along tremendously in three years," Angie Pearce said. "He still has a lot to give in life."
"It's nice to know there's a group like Families of the Wounded out there," she added. "The money is wonderful, but the camaraderie is worth more than the money."
Jonas Beals: 540/368-5036
Email: jbeals@freelancestar.com
For more information about the Families of the Wounded Fund and tomorrow night's event, visit familiesofthe woundedfund.org. The reception and dinner begin at 6:30 p.m. at the National Museum of the Marine Corps at Quantico. For tickets, e-mail Doug Horstman at dchorstman@comcast.net. Tickets are $100 per plate and are tax-deductible. Black tie optional. |