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DEL.ICIO.USWounded in Iraq: Survivors face a painful and lonely road to recovery
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
White dots glow like stars across Sgt. Jim Kirchner’s chest X-ray. Each is a piece of shrapnel he carried home from Iraq. Kirchner has counted 28 throughout his body.
CURTIS COMPTON / AJC Army National Guard Sgt. Jim Kirchner of Paulding County still feels pain in his arm and shoulder from the mortar attack that nearly killed him June 12 in Iraq.
One is working its way out his left arm near a tattoo of a purple hooded Grim Reaper. Others, such as the pair close to his heart, aren’t going anywhere. Doctors told him it would be too risky to pull them out.
The Georgia Army National Guard soldier carries his X-ray images around on a compact disc. He shows them off to friends and gripes about getting hassled at airport metal detectors.
“I’m going to print some of them off to give to my son to do connect-the-dots,” said the father of four from Paulding County.
His sense of humor helps him cope. But he still hurts, sometimes intensely. An insurgent mortar attack on June 12 essentially ended his 18-year military career.
Kirchner’s unit, the 48th Brigade Combat Team, has drawn considerable attention in recent months for the combat deaths it has suffered. Since the brigade arrived in Iraq in early June, 18 members have died, 14 in insurgent bomb attacks. But more than 100 others have been wounded, some severely. And they rarely attract the same attention as those who have died.
CURTIS COMPTON / AJC Kirchner and his wife, Cynthia, had been married only one day when he received orders to Iraq.
Since the start of the war in Iraq, more than 14,500 American service members have been wounded, including nearly 7,000 whose injuries prevented them from returning to duty for at least 72 hours. Many of the more seriously wounded probably would have died in earlier wars but were saved by advanced medical procedures and quicker evacuation to field hospitals.
Federal privacy laws prohibit the military from identifying the wounded and the extent of their injuries without their consent, said Jim Driscoll, a spokesman for the Georgia National Guard. But 17 soldiers from the 48th, including Kirchner, have suffered “serious” or “very serious” injuries, Driscoll said. The group includes two amputees, a soldier with serious burns and others with shrapnel and gunshot wounds.
All have returned to the United States, although some are still recuperating in hospitals.
As of Sept. 13, 31 soldiers from the 48th had received Purple Hearts. Kirchner has not received his medal yet, although his unit nominated him for it.
The 48th also has counted 106 “non-serious” injuries, including concussions, broken bones and minor shrapnel wounds. Most of those soldiers were treated and returned to duty. Five were evacuated from the Middle East and remain in U.S. hospitals.
For those recuperating from their wounds, especially those with serious injuries, the struggle can be difficult, lonely and painful, as Kirchner has discovered.
Kirchner, 37, said the Army will retire him after his medical care is complete. He plans to return to his civilian job as a product specialist for a software company. That will be a challenge, however, because the job requires typing.
After five surgeries, parts of his neck, right arm and right hand remain paralyzed. His medical records say he can no longer carry a weapon or even salute. The doctors limit him to carrying no more than 5 pounds. He walks, but gingerly.
“I can’t give my kids a big hug. That sucks,” Kirchner said in a measured tone. “I’ll never play catch with my sons. I’ll never be able to teach my son to throw a baseball. That kind of stuff hurts me emotionally.”
Kirchner remembers many details about the mortar attack. It was his third day at Forward Operating Base Michael, about 20 miles south of Baghdad. He had just finished night guard duty.
He took off his body armor and helmet and lay in his cot half asleep. Some time that morning, a mortar round exploded just outside his tent, spraying his back, shoulders, right arm and head with shrapnel. The deafening blast threw him to the floor.
He glanced around and tried unsuccessfully to raise himself off the floor. He was injured too badly. He remembers seeing sunlight pouring through holes in the tent wall and thinking, “All of that is inside you.” His blood pooled beneath him on the plywood floor.
“My back was shredded. My arm was just bleeding like a pig. I was screaming, ‘I’m hit! I’m hit! Medic! Medic!’ “
Staff Sgt. Joe Wilson was also in the tent during the attack. He and other soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the 108th Armor Regiment rushed to Kirchner’s aid.
“I couldn’t hear anything because my ears had been blasted,” Wilson, of Canton, said in a telephone interview from Iraq. “I had temporary hearing loss. The tent was full of smoke and dust. Of course Jim was screaming in pain and bleeding. And I reached for my vest to throw over him to protect him from what else was going to happen.”
Wilson joined Kirchner in yelling for medics. Help arrived in less than a minute.
At least three or four more mortar rounds exploded that morning, Kirchner said, seriously wounding two other soldiers and a civilian contract worker.
He said he nearly bled to death in the moments after the blast. His left lung collapsed. The explosion damaged his liver, pancreas and a kidney. Doctors cut him open to repair his damaged organs. A nearly foot-long red scar stretches up his belly and around his belly-button.
When Kirchner was returned to the United States for treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, his wife, Cynthia, stayed by his bedside. She put her hands on his wounded body and prayed with an open Bible beside her.
“It is a miracle he survived,” she said. “It is a true blessing.”
The couple were married last Nov. 7, the day before he learned he would be going to Iraq.
Despite her constant presence, the nightmares started at Walter Reed. Kirchner screamed for medics in his sleep. Doctors diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder, a mental condition in which people relive combat experiences.
“I couldn’t hide it at all,” he said. “I was basically reliving getting blown up.”
When he was finally able to go on convalescent leave from the hospital, Kirchner and his wife went to dinner at a local TGI Friday’s. There, he admitted something to her: He wanted to be back in Iraq with his unit.
“It broke me,” Cynthia Kirchner said. “I cried all through dinner.”
She didn’t fully understand her husband’s bond with the other soldiers until last month, she said, when she saw him grieve for three who had died in a vehicle accident in Iraq.
The couple recently talked about his long recovery, sitting across from each other at the Georgia Army National Guard armory in Douglasville. Kirchner brightened when she arrived and grinned as they talked. She was picking him up from his first day back at work. He didn’t want to drive, because he was taking powerful painkillers. Kirchner spent that first day at work dealing with his medical paperwork and answering phones. The armory felt lonely. At times, he was the only one in the nondescript brick building. With the soldiers away, parts of the facility remain dark and empty.
But Kirchner has something to focus on. He is in charge of a big renovation of the decades-old armory. On his list: new flooring and paint and a good pressure washing.
He plans to get inmates from the local jail to do the work. He won’t let them cut corners. He wants the place to look nice for when his buddies return. He misses the soldiers, the ones he trained with, the ones who saved his life.
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Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By John
September 27, 2005 07:12 AM | Link to this
I appreicate every year of your 18 year service that helped keep my family free so they could sleep in peace at night. May God bless you and ease your pain.
By 1LT Allen Hill
September 27, 2005 09:59 AM | Link to this
That mortar attack was a brutal one. I was about 75 meters away walking away from a latrine. It was a sight, but you must also give credit to the medics of 2nd Battalion, 70th Armor, the active duty division that the 108th replaced. We still occupied the base and our medics put a lot into it, as well as evacing those guys north to the hospital. There was a lot going on that morning, we had been through four days of serious sand storms which the enemy uses to his advantage. I wish the 108th best in the rest of their tour and to wherever they are headed. 2-70th, we are still fighting north of Baghdad. Take care
By JEFF
September 27, 2005 10:24 AM | Link to this
THANKS JIM FOR ALL YOU AND THE REST OF THE 48TH DO AND DID TO KEEP US A LITTLE SOUTH OF BAGHDAD SAFE ON TAMPA.
By Jenny
September 27, 2005 11:44 AM | Link to this
Sgt. Kirchner, don’t give up on what you’ll be able to do. Having been a therapist for more than 10 years I have seen too many people walk, drive, etc that doctors initially said would never be able to do those things. Nothing is impossible.
Thank you so much for all you have done for this great nation. You are appreciated, and will be in my prayers.
By Linda Healton
September 27, 2005 12:18 PM | Link to this
Great story on Jim. Anyone who has met him will see that though his body was damaged,his spirit and sense of humor was not. He is really a great guy.He and his wife have given me some great insight on our soldiers who are at the FOBs,and how they can hold their head up high.They are doing a great job over there. We love you Jim and Sissy May.Hope to see you both soon!
By Greg
September 27, 2005 04:29 PM | Link to this
Jim,
You are a true hero. Thanks for all you have done to help protect this great nation. Our prayers are with you and your family. Get better quickly.
By Andy
September 27, 2005 05:11 PM | Link to this
Typical american guy here, living typical american life- thanks to Great Americans like you and others who have sacrificed so much, and received so little acknowledgement and public appeciation from the public at large. Thank you for safeguarding the American way of life.
By Sweet FX
September 27, 2005 05:17 PM | Link to this
Even though I dont know you personally…here is a BIG THANK YOU for protecting us and hope you feel better. Happy you made it home to your family.
By Capt. Chuck Ferguson
September 27, 2005 05:51 PM | Link to this
From one soldier to another, remember that you will always be a part of our group even after you are “retired”. Hold you head high, as you represent the best of who we are. My best wishes for a speedy recovery!
By 48th family member
September 27, 2005 06:25 PM | Link to this
Jim, where were the medics of the 108th? Didn’t they help?
By Schreck
September 27, 2005 08:31 PM | Link to this
Hey Kirchner, I guess you’re famous now!
By Mom of Spc McCaslin (48th 2/121)
September 27, 2005 08:34 PM | Link to this
To Sgt. Jim Kirchner, one great word: HOOAH! Thanks to you, my son Spc. McCaslin, my “new” son, Spc. Addison, and all the soldiers who fight every day so we don’t have to. It is my prayer that you find here in the states all that you gave for us in Iraq….
By Thankful American
September 27, 2005 09:40 PM | Link to this
Sgt Kirchner, Thank you so much for your service to our country. It is men and women like you that will keep it strong and free. You may not be able to teach your boys to play ball but you have, and I am sure will continue, to teach them what it means to be an American citizen, and the responsibilites that go with it. I am so happy that you will be there to watch them grow up. I know they must be very proud of you, I know all of us who love this country are! God Bless You, A Thankful American
By james kirchner
September 27, 2005 09:40 PM | Link to this
1LT Allen Hill, you are absolutley right Sir, our Aid station was in the middle of unpacking as we had just arrived and there was a bit of chaos in the aid station with all the unpacking and packing going on from what i have been told. i can’t comment for sure on that as i was pretty messed up at the time. the 2/70th medics did work on me and i remember distinctly seeing medics working on me that i did not know. and i know almost all of our medics by sight. Credit should definitely go to the 2/70th from what i saw of their techiques and i will not comment further because of OPSEC. They are true professionals and every U.S. citizen should be proud of them. They are a credit not only to the army but to me personally for helping to keep me alive and i will always be indebted to the 2/70th. May God bless you Sir, the 2/70th and the work you do.
Sgt. Kirchner, James US Army Garrison Medical Holdover
By james kirchner
September 28, 2005 06:46 AM | Link to this
To 48th Family member: Yes of course our medics took care of me too!! I was trying to give the 2/70th the credit they were due as they were omitted completely in the artice. Spc Bentjen from 1/108th was the first face of a medic that i remember. Members of our scouts (1/108th) carried me out to the aid station, and yes of course the medics of the 1/108th worked on me. the 2/70th helped too and I remember seeeing medics i dont know. much of my memories of the blast are like photos with gaps of time between them. it was a team effort by BOTH units. When there are wounded I have learned that pretty much rank, unit, everything, goes out the window. All that matters is getting the wounded into a safe area and treating them. In the hospitals there was little use for rank, between us patients, pain became an ultimate equalizeer, we all hurt.
Sgt. Kirchner, James USAG Med. Hold.
To Schrek: NICE one. I’ll get you back… even in Iraq. ;-)
By mike Greeson
September 28, 2005 08:40 AM | Link to this
Re: Louie Favorite (AJC photographer) Great photos, you go guy!!
About the kids: My son in E-108th comments; “We are pretty much seen like armed ice cream trucks to the kids. They know we always have cold drinks, candy, or are at least interesting to mess with, and we tolerate their badgering much more than any Iraqi would”.
Civil affairs major is right, it is a creditable Hearts and minds action.
About peanuts: Two tons is about right, My boys eat then shell and all, it’s fiber that makes you regular.
Try them out on the kids. I wonder if peanuts would grow in Iraq?
By Pete Schneider
September 28, 2005 09:19 AM | Link to this
God Bless You Sgt Kirschner, we are continuing the fight for you from here, know that you, as well as the rest of our wounded, and our fallen brothers will never be forgotten, nor will what you did here…HOOAH! SGT Pete Schneider 2-121 IN (M) 48thBCT.
By Joe & Karen Wilson
September 28, 2005 10:25 AM | Link to this
Dear “K”, God bless you K. We are so proud to know you. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with you, Sissy, and family. We had such a nice visit with you and our son (SSG Joseph W. Wilson,Jr.) Of course, the IN-N-OUT hamburgers made the day even better. We look forward to another visit with you when Joe comes home. Until then, we continue to pray for all the 48th. “Please God, surround them with your hedge of protection and send your legend of Angels to defend them and keep them safe.” Hugs & Love, Joe & Karen Wilson (Proud Parents)
By Mrs. Joe Wilson
September 28, 2005 11:21 AM | Link to this
K, We are so proud of you,Sissy and the boys. You have showed true “Grace” through this ordeal. Joe knows you would of been there for him as well.He misses his “Bud”. The bond that holds you all together we may never understand, but you are all “brothers” God bless you and God Bless the 48th. Tell Kido I said “HI!”
By Dumb question
September 28, 2005 11:23 AM | Link to this
To 48th family member: Was that question for real? I’m guessing you think that the 108th just sat around letting other medics do their job. I find that comment rude and disrespectful to the 108th medics. Forgive me if I am wrong, but that is the way you come off sounding, to me at least.
By You have got to be kidding
September 28, 2005 01:22 PM | Link to this
DITTO to Dumb Questions reply. I think the post by 48th family member was just ignorant. If I was James, I would not even responded to such stupidity.
By SGT Doug Farmer
September 28, 2005 04:07 PM | Link to this
SGT Kirchner, Glad to hear you are doing good. Don’t give up with the therepy. I am still dealing with the foot injury I sustained. The medics in the 108th Aromr or for any medic or corpsman have my respect. My life was saved by one such HERO in Operation Just Cause in Panama in 1989. Anyone that thinks medics don’t do there jobs is clueless.
SGT Doug Farmer CO A 1/108th Armor
By pam
September 28, 2005 07:10 PM | Link to this
ok..”.everybody just calm down”, i’m sure the “48th family member” was not in anyway calling our 108th medics “slackers”… we are “all” so protective over our 48th…i’m the same way… but, i think it was just a question, because they were not mentioned in the first comment…we are an army family…and like any family…we don’t always like each other, but we have to respect each other.peace.
By alexander
September 28, 2005 09:32 PM | Link to this
to all the 48th I thank you for every sacrifice you have made and i hope yall will be back soon and as soon as you do and after yall get through with visiting your family and friends, I hope you could hold another raider competition because yall hold the best but please be careful and thank you again
By Jim R
September 29, 2005 11:16 AM | Link to this
Jim, We here at Informatica (place in GA where he works outside of his military job)are all proud of you. To know you is to love you. You’re a terrific guy and we are happy you are safely home. Go Rainman!
By Robyn Steele
September 29, 2005 11:29 AM | Link to this
Jim,Our family has known Joe Wilson for many years and we have followed you through your ordeal via Joe’s parents. Know that our loving thoughts and prayers continue to be with you and your wife.Thanks for being a special person and sharing your private struggle.We need to know and many are unable or unwilling to articulate the mental, physical and emotional anguish.
By Cindy
September 29, 2005 02:29 PM | Link to this
Jimmy, you scared about 10 years off my life when you got hit. But I was thrilled to see first hand how quickly you recoved while at Walter Reed. Your recovery has been truly amazing. It’s a definite blessing and a gift that you’re still with us. I’m grateful for that every day. I love you. You’re the best big brother a girl could ask for. Joe, Baby Elizabeth and I can’t wait to see all y’all again soon! Hugs & kisses to you, Sissy and the kids.
By wow
September 29, 2005 03:45 PM | Link to this
The way I took “48th family member” comment was that he/she was wondering why the article didn’t mention the Medic’s and give them the credit they so deserve…but it doesn’t stop at the medic’s…everyone who is a soldier and is in Iraq..or any other country deserve more credit then they seem to get. Its like a cake…it takes all kinds of ingridients to make it excellent….same with the 48th.
By Miranda
September 30, 2005 09:17 AM | Link to this
SGT Kirchner, Thank you SO much for your service and dedication to our country. Without poeple like you selflessly going and fighting, this country would be doomed. Although you may never be able to play ball with your boys know that you have set a wonderful example of what a true American is. I pray that you continue to recover so that someday you CAN get out there and play catch with your boys. God Bless you and your family. May all your dreams come true. HOOAH!!
By Sgt. James Kirchner
October 1, 2005 08:45 AM | Link to this
To Everyone: Thank you sooo much for your well wishes. I cant explain how it makes you feel. And yes i keep faith with PT and OT, but i have shrapnel embedded in the joint of my elbow. We will see in a year or so how it heals up.
The next time you see a Viet Nam vet tell them thanks, no one did when they came back; I know my family served there too.
I think the 48th family member asked their question innocently (no one knows what really goes on in the fob except the people in the fob) and does not deserve the bashing, please leave them alone.
To the other soldiers please keep takin’ the fight to em! and finally, I know for a fact the reporter is on the way to FOB St. Michael (i use the real politically incorrect name becasue i believe that St. Michael himself looked over me there, i pretty much should be dead, that was the name of the fob when i was there, and besides i am a Christian)
i will not disclose when he will arrive for Operational Security or who he will be talking to for stories in his mind since that would take away the suspense. so keep reading the AJC and give him some time to get there. travel between fobs can be difficult.
and to my brothers at the other satillite fobs i.e Row and Stokeley he is coming there too. the 108th (ar and cav) will probably get sick of him… just joking.
Thunder Six Delta, aka Sgt. k Out
By Judy
October 4, 2005 04:32 PM | Link to this
Happy Tuesday, Jim! I have been praying every day since Jim was injured. I am so very proud of him - he is the nicest guy you ever want to meet! He has always been proud to be in the service, and we (of the US) are so proud to have the soldiers and medics and the others that fill in the needed strength. Jim, good to hear the progress, and my prayers for continued healing and activity. I know you’ll be watched over - as I know that prayers are answered. I worked with Jim for 6+ years (in the daily work field), and I have been impressed with the fine, caring person he is. My hello and prayers are being sent to you, Missy and your children. Cheers, Judy
By MIKE & DIANE
October 6, 2005 04:19 PM | Link to this
Dearest Sgt. Kirshner (JIM) Mike and I wish you a FULL and Speedy Recovery ! With a great Wife like Sissy and your loving children and family by your side, you will prove to be, as you always are, a credit to the Human Race. You know we love you and SOON you and Mike will take that long overdue Motorcycle Ride, (with Sissy and I to bug you :) Seriously though, we want to thank you and your fellow men for the courageous job you did in Iraq. With much love, Mike & Diane