Joining Forces Blog

A Wounded Warrior Embraces the New Normal: Part One

Ed. note: This week, warriorcare.mil will feature the story of a catastrophically wounded Service member and his saga of recovery to employed Veteran.  In an effort to highlight what our wounded veterans can offer to private and public organizations, we chose to focus on retired Army Master Sergeant, Jeffrey Mittman.  His story is one of conviction and the dogged determination necessary to continue with his recovery and his successful transition to civilian and veteran life. 

In order to bring his story full circle, we have invited his wife, Christy, and his employers from the DoD’s Defense Finance and Accounting Office (Indianapolis) to give their account of what this journey has meant for them as well.  We begin the series with Christy Mittman’s account of her husband’s injuries and how her family’s life was changed forever. Please follow this story at warriorcare.mil.

Before my husband Jeff was injured, I would say that we lived a fairly normal military life. He was in and out of our house a lot, back and forth to schools and various other places that his military duties took him. While he was away, my children and I went about our daily lives and made the best of the situation. It is not to say that we did not miss him, but we dealt with it the best we could. Life does not stop just because your husband is away on duty.

This “normal” life changed on 7 July 2005. Many people may remember this day as the day of the London bombings. Jeff was in Iraq on his fourth combat tour when I received a phone call from the Department of Defense informing me that he had been very seriously injured, had severe facial trauma, and a right-hand injury. The caller could provide no further details and told me that I would be receiving an additional call when they had more information.

When I received this phone call, I was visiting my parents in Indiana with our two daughters who were 8 and 2 years old at the time. I was faced with the task of sitting two small children down and telling them that their father had been injured in a war that they did not understand. So there we sat for the next 12 hours as family gathered around us and awaited further word on Jeff’s condition. Finally, I received a call and was told that my husband was on his way to Germany and I would hear from the doctors after they were able to evaluate him.

An Hour with Michelle Obama

First Lady Michelle Obama participated in a roundtable with National Guard families and local community leaders dedicated to supporting military families, at the 133rd Air National Guard in Minneapolis, Minn., March 16, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert)

Military spouses are known for our toughness. For our ability to be resilient.  We can turn a house full of all white walls somehow into a home. We can cheer up a child when they don’t understand why their daddy can’t be home on their birthday. We are a tough group and we are resilient.  All we ask for in return is for understanding, respect, and an occasional “thank you”.

To receive that thank you from Michelle Obama is quite the honor. I had the great opportunity to meet her last Friday with a delegation of military families and organizations from Minnesota.  Mrs. Obama graciously spent close to an hour with me and seven other individuals to try to learn more about how our state supports military families and to find out what more can be done with her Joining Forces initiative.

She thanked us for the sacrifices that we have made as families of deployed soldiers. She told a young man of 13 years whose father was about to deploy that our nation’s military kids are courageous and have earned our gratitude. She held the hand of a mother who lost her young son in Afghanistan. But, above all, she listened intently. She genuinely wanted to know what she and Dr. Jill Biden could do with their initiative to somehow give back to those who have given the most for our nation.

When talking about what military families and children go through, Mrs. Obama said, “We've got 1 percent of this country serving and sacrificing on behalf of the other 99 percent of us. That can be a daunting position to be in. And a lot of times America just doesn't understand the struggles. ... We take it for granted because you all handle and shoulder the burden so well.”