08/25/2026
It’s hard to believe that 20 years ago today was one of the worst days of my life.
That day, I was hit by a gr***de. At the time, I didn’t know the full extent of what had happened to me. I had sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI), an injury that would eventually lead to me being medically retired.
About a year and a half after I was injured, I started showing symptoms. For the next several years, I sought treatment through the VA. It felt like the answer was always another pill and hoping for the best. I knew something wasn’t right, but I didn’t know if things would ever truly get better.
Then, about four years ago, Defenders of Freedom and the Texas Valor Project gave me an opportunity that changed my life. They sent me to Resiliency Brain Health to receive treatment for my TBI and finally address the injury I had been carrying with me for so many years.
So today, 20 years later, I find myself reflecting on everything that has happened since that day.
Most importantly, I thank God that I’m still here. There is a reason I survived that day, and I truly believe He still has a purpose for me.
I want to thank my beautiful and amazing wife, Katie Phillips. You have been my rock through everything. No matter what life has thrown at us, I have always known that I could count on you standing beside me.
I’m thankful for my family and friends who have supported me throughout the years and have been there during the good times and the difficult ones.
And most of all, I’m thankful for my battle buddies, especially Chris Cornwell and Chris Berg. There are some bonds that can only be understood by the men who were there beside you when everything went to hell. Twenty years may have passed, but those memories, those sacrifices, and that brotherhood never fade.
Twenty years later, I’m still here.
I’m grateful for every day I’ve been given, grateful for the people God has put in my life, and grateful that my story didn’t end that day.
God still has a purpose for me, and I intend to make the most of the time He has given me.
The two pictures is at Al Ambar university before I got injured . The second is a month after I got injured and I weighed about 160. The. You have a picture of our AO (area of operation). Then the last picture is of our squad with Doc Reyes. The last is me going through TBI treatment.
