Wounded Warriors Workout With Nationals

By  //  March 4, 2012

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BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA • SPACE COAST STADIUM – The Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team practiced at Space Coast Stadium and worked out with the Washington Nationals players including pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg.

AMONG BREVARD'S Wounded Warriors is U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Russ Marek, pictured above with his mom, Rose. Marek suffered a traumatic brain injury and was burned so severely on 20 percent of his body that he lost muscle and his right ear. He also lost his right leg below the knee and his right arm below the elbow. Marek was knighted into the Order of St. George Silver Medallion this month at the U.S. Army Simulation and Training Center in Orlando. (For SpaceCoastDaily.com)

Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) began when several veterans and friends, moved by stories of the first wounded service members returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq, took action to help others in need.

What started as a program to provide comfort items to wounded service members has grown into a complete rehabilitative effort to assist warriors as they recover and transition back to civilian life.

Tens of thousands of Wounded Warriors and caregivers receive support each year through WWP programs designed to nurture the mind and body, and encourage economic empowerment and engagement. WWP’s mission influences the innovative programs and services offered to Wounded Warriors.

With advancements in battlefield medicine and body armor, an unprecedented percentage of service members are surviving severe wounds or injuries.

Mission To Honor & Empower

For every U.S. soldier killed in World Wars I and II, there were 1.7 soldiers wounded. In Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, for every U.S. soldier killed, seven are wounded.

Combined, there have been almost 42,000 injured in the two conflicts – nearly 32,000 injured in Operation Iraqi Freedom and nearly 10,000 in Operation Enduring Freedom.

With the mission to honor and empower Wounded Warriors, WWP is the hand extended to encourage warriors as they adjust to their new normal and achieve new triumphs.

Offering a variety of programs and services, WWP is equipped to serve warriors with every type of injury – from the physical to the invisible wounds of war.

New Pilot Volunteer Program

As WWP shifts their volunteer program to more of a community-based model, they have launched pilot programs in the following cities:

If you reside in the above areas, please take a moment to register as a volunteer. Upon registration, you will have the ability to view upcoming events in your area, receive email alerts when new opportunities are made available, and register to attend an upcoming volunteer opportunity.