Nearing summit as the sun slowly rises...

 

There are times in life when you just have to marvel at human capacity to overcome the most extreme adversity. Last week I had the honor of supporting four distinguished US service veterans to the summit of 14, 411-foot Mount Rainier. Their improbable path to the summit was by way of serious combat duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, where they narrowly escaped death, followed by countless surgeries and months of rehabilitation. And a degree of physical and mental pain that I can’t even begin to fathom. Bryan, Jay, Kevin and Mike aren’t like you and me, or anyone else I’ve ever met. Their tremendous acts of bravery in the war against terror — which they recount with modesty and candor — make your jaw drop in awe, but their resolve in healing is perhaps even more impressive. 

Camp Patriot was organized to benefit some of our 2.3 million wounded veterans, enabling them to get out into the wilderness for a variety of adventures, the most extreme of which is the annual Mount Rainier ascent. Micah Clark, Executive Director, and a team of devoted guides and other volunteers hit a home run with another successful summit climb. All four vets tagged the summit in fine form; Jay even did so with a nasty case of bronchitis, which is impressive given the very thin air of the summit.

Jay Redman atop Mount Rainier

Jay isn’t the kind of guy who gives up easy, you see. Jason “Jay” Redman, a Navy Lieutenant and SEAL, was caught in a fierce firefight in Afghanistan. Separated from some of his team, Al-Qaeda gunfire ripped his face and left arm to pieces, and he very narrowly avoided becoming a fatality of war. Thinking of his faith and family in what might’ve become his final moments on Earth, he somehow held on. Forty-plus surgeries later, including 7 months with a tracheotomy breathing tube, he’s an inspiration to all wounded warriors. A large orange poster board that he displayed outside his room at Bethesda Naval Hospital says it all about Jay:

‘‘Attention to all who enter here. If you are coming into this room with sorrow or to feel sorry for my wounds, go elsewhere. The wounds I received I got in a job I love, doing it for people I love, supporting the freedom of a country I deeply love. I am incredibly tough and will make a full recovery. What is full? That is the absolute utmost physically my body has the ability to recover. Then I will push that about 20 percent further through sheer mental tenacity. This room you are about to enter is a room of fun, optimism, and intense rapid regrowth. If you are not prepared for that, go elsewhere.”

 

Kevin Ivory victorious on the summit of Mount Ranier --- Kev has my ice axe and flag in his left hand (flown during Space Shuttle mission STS-86, and taken to the summit of Everest with me in 2009)

 

 

Kevin Ivory, a Marine medic (Petty Officer Third Class) on his 3rd tour of duty in Iraq, was out on patrol in Fallujah when the Humvee he was driving ran directly over three Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), launching him and his buddy Phil 10 feet in the air. Severely wounded by shrapnel blast, he found the strength to render aid to Phil, who’d lost his arm in the attack. Despite Kevin’s severe injuries, blood loss and shock, he managed to place and maintain a tourniquet on his buddy’s arm, drifting in and out of consciousness. When rescue crews found the pair, an unconscious Kevin still had a tight grip on Phil’s brachial artery, thereby saving his life. Although Kevin emphatically said he’d never climb a mountain like Rainier again (he mentioned Mauna Kea in Hawaii as an option — basically anyplace warm!), seeing him celebrate on the summit was a beautiful thing, and clearly a milestone event in his life. 

Celebration on the Summit: Mike Day (lower right), Kevin Ivory (center) and Bryan Stuart (far right); Scott, Bob and Erica also raising the flag...

21-year Navy SEAL veteran (Master Chief) Mike Day makes Rambo look like a male figure skater doing a Triple Salchow with a Half Gainer (or whatever it is those little guys do). Mike faced such overwhelming odds in an Al-Qaeda firefight in Fallujah it’s hard to fathom it, especially given the humility in which he recounts his fateful day. Riddled with bullets and presumed dead (he took 27 bullets in total, 16 to his body and 11 to his body armor), he somehow rallied and took down his four assailants. Had his valor been witnessed by two independent sources, as is required for the Congressional Medal of Honor, it is likely he’d have received our nation’s highest honor for valor in combat. Mike made it to the top in fine form, and apparently liked it well enough to want to take a friend and fellow wounded warrior (double lower extremity amputee) to climb Denali, an even colder and tougher destination. That’s just the kind of guy he is — as a retired SEAL, he works with a non-profit to help other wounded veterans get the services they need to transition back into civilian life.

Bryan Stuart, also a Navy SEAL, was hard hit by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) during his first tour of duty, and has stoically fought  to recover strength and function following multiple injuries and other issues. An electronics and communications expert on the SEAL teams, he hopes to go back to college soon to pursue an electrical engineering degree as his wife completes medical school. SEALs are famously tough: Bryan never showed any weakness or suffering on the climb. Although a quiet individual by nature, I could tell by his proud smile that he was powerfully changed by the summit experience. What’s more, the experience left the entire team of guides and volunteers (including Micah, Bill, Curtis, Art, Ann, Erica, Heidi, Tim, Kegan, Walt, Bob and me) with a profound sense of awe — we most likely derived even greater uplift from the climb than the vets!

Please consider giving generously to Camp Patriot so they can help others — “Giving back to those who have given.” www.camppatriot.org