SGT JOHNNY JONES
(N0minated by Joyce Jones)
Gilmore High School
July 30, 2011
My Hero is my son. He is an E.O.D. (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) Tech in the Marine Corps. During a mission a combat engineer stepped on an I.E.D. and my son lost both legs above the knees, as well as sustained major injuries to his right forearm and his lost the first digit of his index finger. He also has T.B.I. (Traumatic Brain Injury). After all that he has been through himself, he volunteers to go to Bethesda and be there when the new wounded warriors come in to help with their families and the wounded to keep them motivated and inspired. He does volunteer work at Walter Reed and the National Naval Medical Center. About two weeks ago, he started an internship on Capitol Hill with the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. On his robotic legs nearly 12 hours each day, Joey still has pain and fatigue, but he’s a long way from just a few months ago when more than an hour on the legs sent him back to the wheelchair. I truly am a military mom and I pray for them all daily, they all are my Heroes, I am just a little more partial to my son. He said,” I didn’t go to Afghanistan to take lives but to save lives”. I know that the legs my son lost are what America stands on.
