wounded in body but not in spi

By Corinne Reilly

The Virginian-Pilot

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A little while before giving a speech Wednesday afternoon at Fort Monroe, Army Col. Gregory Gadson sat down to lunch with a few colleagues.

Making conversation, one of them mentioned that he'd heard that a lot of people were coming, that a lot of people were looking forward to Gadson's talk.

Gadson thought: Why would anyone be excited? I'm just an old soldier. I put my pants on in the morning just like everybody else.

Then it hit him.

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"I don't put my pants on like everybody else," he said, recounting the conversation a couple of hours later for his audience at Fort Monroe.

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Gadson, who grew up in Chesapeake, is a double amputee. He lost his legs after a roadside bomb blew him from his vehicle in Iraq in 2007.

T hree years later, he's OK with the fact that he does things differently. He says it's only made him better-suited for the job he accepted this summer, as director of the Army's Wounded Warrior Program.

"We all have value," he told his audience. "We all have something to give."

Gadson, 44, made the stop at Fort Monroe to recognize National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The Wounded Warrior Program serves roughly 8,000 severely wounded combat veterans, and a big part of its mission is making sure those soldiers have a place in the military for as long as they want one, despite their injuries.

Gadson said he believes the Army has finally started to honor that pledge. "Our Army has come a long way," he said. "We're not obligated by the law, but we're living up to the spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act, anyway."

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In discussing his injuries and recovery, Gadson said that in the moments after the explosion, he thought he probably wouldn't survive the blood loss; he was saved by the use of tourniquets.

Doctors removed the remains of his left leg about a week later, and then his right leg about a week after that. His right arm and hand were also badly injured. He has limited use of them today. He walks with the help of prosthetics but sometimes uses a wheelchair.

Since the explosion, he's endured 23 surgeries, he said.

Gadson omega watches noted that he drove himself to Fort Monroe and that he walked onto the stage before his talk. "I might not get there as fast as you," he said. "I might not get there the same way. But I'll get there."

Gadson attended Indian River High School in Chesapeake, where he played football. He went on to play at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He later became a field artillery officer and served in every major conflict of the past 20 years, including in Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia.

Besides sharing his own story, Gadson used his speech to omega watches remind his mostly military audience that not all combat injuries are visible, and that all types of disabilities should be treated with compassion.

"You don't know what people are carrying," he said. "It's as simple as extending basic human dignity to everyone, regardless of their challenges."

The Wounded Warrior Progr