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From the Battlefield to the Fairway

Thursday, November 08 2007 by | Send to a friend

From the Battlefield to the Fairway

Sean Lewis

Sean Lewis and Michael Bradley became friends at boot camp. They were deployed together to Iraq - Mike was a medic, and Sean was working as a bodyguard.

One day at camp, Mike felt a huge mortar hit and went running towards the site. Two soldiers had been killed. The survivor was Sean, Mike's friend. He'd had one amputated and was bleeding from three major arteries.

Michael Bradley

Mike immediately went to work - using all of the medical training he had learned at Fort Hood. He finally stopped the blood.

Sean had actually stayed conscious throughout the entire ordeal, but Mike was so focused on saving the soldier, he didn't realize the broken man was Sean.

Sean Lewis golfing - larger >>

Back in the States, almost a year to the day of the incident, Mike and Sean met up at Walter Reed. Mike was working there, and being treated for PTSD and a brain injury. Sean was learning to live with one leg.

The friends picked up where they left off. They soon found themselves golfing together - though neither of them had particularly liked the sport before, they got into it through a new program that aims to get vets out on the fairway.

Both men find that golf not only strengthens their friendship, it is also helping in their rehabilitation.

• Find out more about the golf program 
• Field audio recording for this program provided by Jamie Squire
• The image of Sean in silhouette was provided by the Salute Military Golf Association. The image was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
  

Your Story - Liza Koomen

Liza Koomen with her dog

Liza Koomen's father had a mischievous sense of humor, and he loved animals. Both traits came together when he took in a flying squirrel, which had somehow gotten into his house.

After her father passed away, Liza had to get his house in order. She spent the night there and awoke to a fitful surprise when a squirrel jumped on her. She cussed the squirrel out, but later realized that it embodied her dad's impish sense of humor. And it helped her smile at a time when she really needed to.

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