Iraq Veteran, Struck By AT-Mine, Suffering from TBI, Needs Accessible Bathroom
Douglas Shreve was born in New York and joined the Army in 1993. He did 3 tours in the Middle East. He was sent to Iraq in 2003-2004 and sent to Afghanistan in 2006-2007. He served as an 88 Motor Transport Operator (88 Mike) with the 3-71 Calvary in the 10th Mountain Division. He was also with the 4th Forward Support Battalion 4th Infantry Division.
In Iraq, at the last minute, he was assigned to Enemy Ammunition Capture NCO I/C for the brigade area of responsibility. On November 21st, 2003 Doug's team was removing 120MM rockets from an area that was found several days before.
Douglas writes, "I decided to take point behind our gun truck. I also had a bad vibe and chose not to load my truck with rockets. On our route, my truck hit an anti-tank mine (AT-Mine) that blew-up underneath my seat. It flung the door open and ejected me 30 feet in the air. I landed on [my] head-back. Not having a seatbelt on saved my life."
Douglas is considered 100% disabled according to the VA due to his combat
injury, and was he presented with a Purple Heart... however the government still will not grant Douglas a fully accessible bathroom. He is thrown off balance due to his TBI and is walking with a cane. His wife Liz is constantly worried about him stepping into the shower and he needs a strong and stable seat to safely and properly bathe. He also needs grab bars in place to hold himself up and catch his balance. This project will cost about $15,000 to complete.
"So far I have had several surgeries due to my injuries. I deal with PTSD, TBI and now memory issues."
If you believe Douglas deserves safety in his own home to simply bathe without fear of further injury, please contribute to our annual fund as we would like to begin work on this project within the coming weeks.