Former commander in chief pays tribute to wounded warriors during visit

  • Published
  • By John Scaggs
  • Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) --  Some 1,500 people, including eight wounded warriors along with families of military members killed in action in the past 10 years, welcomed former President George W. Bush when he took the stage inside the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Nov. 11.

It marked President Bush's third visit to the museum. He visited in 2003 and again in 2008 while serving as the 43rd U.S. president.

"I wanted to be here on Veterans Day to honor fallen heroes and to tell our men and women in the armed forces how grateful I am for their service and their sacrifices," he said.

During his 27-minute address, President Bush discussed his decision to order U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, locations where the eight wounded warriors were injured and the sons of two parents in attendance were killed.

"I drew inspiration from meeting men and women who risked their lives protecting American people and our allies abroad," he said. "It's appropriate that we honor them today," he added, nodding toward wounded veterans seated near the stage.

Following his remarks, officials escorted President Bush to a private room in the museum where he spent about 45 minutes with the eight Wounded Warriors and the parents of two men killed in action.

Among those President Bush spoke with were:

> Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro. While deployed in 2005 as a joint  terminal attack controller in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Sergeant Del Toro's vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device. The blast burned more than 80 percent of his body. He spent three months in a coma after his injuries and doctors gave him a less-than-20-percent chance of surviving.

As his recovery began, doctors told Sergeant Del Toro he'd never walk again and would have numerous physical limitations. Since then he has run 10K races and is lifting weights.

"I simply didn't buy in to their prognosis," the sergeant said. "Instead, I became more determined to lead as normal a life as possible.

"One of the challenges was that I couldn't wrestle with my son or pick him up and hold him for a long time due to the pain and sensitivity of my nerve endings," he said. "That helped to motivate me to overcome these injuries so I can enjoy my family and the blessings that life has to offer."

In February, officials permitted Sergeant Del Toro to reenlist for four more years. In doing so he became the first Airman categorized as 100 percent disabled to reenlist in the Air Force.

To date he's undergone 120 surgeries and likely will undergo another one within the next six to 12 months.

"The plan is to sew my left hand to my hip," Sergeant Del Toro explained. "The intensity of the burns fused together my hand and fingers. This procedure is designed to increase blood flow to my digits, which in turn could allow doctors to separate or spread apart what remains of my fingers and give me more flexibility."

His session with President Bush marked the third time the two have met, but only the second time the sergeant could speak to the president.

"I was told that President Bush stopped by my room while I was in a coma and he subsequently spoke with other patients," Sergeant Del Toro said. "He seems to truly care about the troops, and to have the opportunity to meet him again accompanied by my wife and son is a special moment."

He remains on active-duty and currently is at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, where he is learning to become a tactical air control party instructor.

> Senior Airman Tre Porfirio. While deployed to Afghanistan for the first time in November 2009, an Afghan insurgent shot Airman Porfirio three times at point-blank range from behind with an M-16 rifle.

What followed was ground-breaking surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Surgeons removed Airman Porfirio's pancreas, which was sent to the University of Miami in Florida, where a medical team separated the insulin-producing islet cells and returned them to Walter Reed. There the cells were injected into Airman Porfirio's liver where they began to produce insulin. He's undergone 11 surgeries to repair his abdomen.

Airman Porfirio obtained a medical pass to meet President Bush for the first time. Currently Airman Porfirio is a patient in the Wright-Patterson Medical Center due to a bacterial lung infection.

"Losing my pancreas and spleen means it's difficult for my body to heal, which increases the significance of infections," he explained. "The process just takes longer."

One result from his injuries is the challenge of simply sitting up.

"The removal of my lower two abs means I have to pull myself up," he said. "I can't run or do much in terms of physical therapy to strengthen myself at this stage.

"But it's exciting to see so many people turn out for this event," Airman Porfirio added. "The surrounding communities are very supportive and people seem to genuinely appreciate what we in the military do."

Medical officials have told Airman Porfirio they are optimistic he will fully recover within the next 12 to 18 months. He remains on active-duty at Wright-Patterson AFB.

Others who met privately with President Bush included:

> Master Sgt. Robert Bean. He's undergone two operations on his right knee after serving as a combat pararescueman and team leader aboard an MH-53J Pave Low helicopter during the rescue of a downed F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot near Belgrade, Serbia, in May 1999. His Distinguished Flying Cross citation states that Sergeant Bean displayed exemplary skill and dedication under repeated direct enemy fire and performed several critical actions that directly saved his crew and led to mission success. He remains on active duty as the pararescue subject matter expert in the Battlefield Airmen Branch at Wright-Patterson AFB.

> Richard Brake. While an Air Force staff sergeant, he was a tactical air control party/joint terminal attack controller. Then-Sergeant Brake served numerous tours in Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2003 to 2005, supporting the 5th and 10th Special Forces Group, 10th Mountain Division and the 82nd Airborne Division, in locations such as Baghdad, Baqubah, Balad City, Samarra, Thar Thar and Salmen Pak. He since separated and is being treated for combat-related injures. Currently he is a contractor at Wright-Patterson AFB.

> Retired Tech. Sgt. Bryan Carnes. As a special operations weather technician, then-Sergeant Carnes supported and deployed to operations in Bosnia, Kosovo, Egypt, Iraq, Afghanistan, Indonesia and the Philippines from 2001 to 2005 and was attached to conventional and unconventional combat units. He was medically retired from the Air Force in 2005 as a result of combat-related injuries.

> Army Reserve Col. Carol Laage. A civilian nurse practitioner, Colonel Laage has been in the Army Reserve since March 1977. She has deployed three times in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, her last with the Army Surgeon General's Office in the Wounded Warrior Program as a liaison to the Veterans Administration. She has been rated by the military for service-connected injuries as a result of her duties.

> Donna Kuglics, the mother of Air Force Special Agent Matthew Kuglics. Special Agent Kuglics deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. On June 5, 2007, he was in a convoy returning to Kirkuk Regional Air Base when he was killed by a the detonation of an improvised explosive device adjacent to the convoy.  At the time he was permanently assigned to Wright-Patterson AFB. Base officials re-named a street to Kuglics Boulevard in his honor.

> Keith Maupin, the father of U.S. Army Reservist Staff Sgt. Keith Matthew Maupin. While serving in Iraq, the enemy attacked Sergeant Maupin's convoy with rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire near Baghdad. Sergeant Maupin was captured by Iraqi insurgents April 9, 2004. On June 28, 2004, an Arabic-language television network aired a low-quality video depicting Sergeant Maupin's execution. His body was found in March 2008, but confirmation was not made until March 30, 2008. Currently Mr. Maupin is the president of the Yellow Ribbon Support Center.

> Retired Airman 1st Class Shannon Satterfield. A Desert Storm and Desert Shield veteran, then-Airman Satterfield, a security forces airman, was deployed to Saudi Arabia as base security support with the 4409th Operations Group. She later was retired from the Air Force for service-related injuries and currently is in civil service working as an F-35 production program manager at Wright-Patterson AFB.

> Master Sgt. Dean Unger. Sergeant Unger, a combat controller with the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, has completed 10 deployments in support of the war on terrorism. While serving as a turret gunner on patrol in Mosul, Iraq, an improvised explosive device damaged the vehicle he was riding in and shrapnel struck Sergeant Unger's neck. He remains on active-duty at Pope AFB, N.C.

(Bryan Carnes, a public affairs specialist at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, contributed to this story.)