Robert Augustine Seidel III

West Point, 2004

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Eric S. Bartelt, Sports Editor on September 14, 2007:

Wheels for Warriors honors Soldier Story by: Eric S. Bartelt, Sports Editor Sergeant Luke Shirley's life dramatically changed the night of Dec. 20, 2006, while conducting a patrol near Baghdad, Iraq. He was struck by the blast of a 155-millimeter round. The explosion took Shirley's right arm and right leg, but it didn't take away his spirit. In spite of his injuries, he has a distinctly positive outlook on life. "I'm doing good [right now]. The doctors and therapists [at Walter Reed Army Medical Center] have treated me very well and have taught me how to do things with my prosthetics," said Shirley, about his physical and occupational therapy at Walter Reed. "When I was in Iraq, I knew people who were wounded or killed. I saw the explosions, the missing limbs and I [saw] the suffering, the fear and the brain trauma." "When I look at myself, I know what hit me, it was 155-millimeter round and I should have been completely disintegrated, but I wasn’t," he added. "I see other guys with worse injuries than I [have] and it puts it all in perspective." Shirley, an infantryman, believes he'll be at Walter Reed for at least a year because his medical board has yet to begin, but his perspective changed Saturday when he received a specially-equipped conversion van from Operation Support Our Troops and its Wheels for Warriors program. Mary Kay Salomone, founder and president of the Rhode Island-based charitable organization, and Steve Middleton, Wheels for Warriors Chairman, were at Michie Stadium Saturday to present the van to Shirley as a part of Military Appreciation Day ceremonies. Founded in 2001 by a group of West Point parents led by Salomone, OSOT has improved the morale and well-being of American Forces deployed overseas. They have mailed more than one million pounds of care packages to deployed service members in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past six years. "When my husband was in Vietnam, I knew how special care packages were to the troops," Salomone said. A daughter, wife and mother of West Point graduates, Salomone felt compelled to expand OSOT's purpose with the start of the Wheels for Warriors program. She said she wanted to help wounded Soldiers get back to a life of normalcy. "It’s been a blessing to us for every van we give. We get more from it then we ever thought," Salomone explained. "We get more just from seeing the smile on his face – just knowing Luke can go to a movie now because he’s got wheels [specially equipped for him] and doesn’t have to depend on someone else. "It gives our wounded Soldiers dignity, it gives them independence, it gives them the freedom of mobility and these were things that they lost," she added. "That’s the reason why we do it, to give them their freedom." Each van costs approximately $50,000 and can run up to $100,000, according to Middleton, after customization such as the motorized wheelchair ramp, installed on Shirley's van. The van was dedicated in honor of 1st Lt. Robert Seidel III, a 2004 West Point graduate, who was killed May 18, 2006, by an IED that detonated near his HMMWV during combat operations in Baghdad. Seidel and Shirley were members of the 10th Mountain Division at the time of their fateful days, and the Seidel family members were stirred when they met Shirley for the first time. "Rob and Luke were both with the 10th Mountain Division and they loved what they were doing," said Sandy Seidel, Robert’s mother. "To me Luke is amazing. He’s a remarkable young man and it was a pleasure to meet him." Seidel's parents started a wounded Soldiers fund knowing it was something their son believed in. Their presence for the van presentation, although bittersweet, was something they wanted to do in their son's honor. "Robbie was a platoon leader who thought the world of his troops, like a father with his own kid," Robert said. "It's just appropriate that somebody like Sgt. Shirley received the van… "Robbie would be proud that he's getting a van. Coming back here stirs up old emotions, but we're glad to be here because we're proud of what [Robbie] did and Sgt. Shirley did," Robert added. OSOT and the Wheels for Warriors programs have given away four vans over the past two years. They said they want to give at least three more away by the end of the year. Shirley, who was accompanied during his trip to West Point by his brother, Joshua, said he felt very humbled when he received this gift and plans to help other wounded Soldiers get around in the future. "I can think of a million guys who deserve [the van] more than me, but for whatever reason I was chosen," Shirley said. "The van will help me... take my wheelchair [with me] and there are other guys [at Walter Reed] who might need a ride [but] don’t have the ability because they are all by themselves and have nobody to help them... With the van, if they need some help to go out for a drive and to see a movie or something, I have the ability to take them." For more information about Operation Support Our Troops go to their Web site at www.westpoin.org/family/support-our-troops.

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