An Army of One
U.S. Army 1st Lt. William “Eddie” Rebrook IV, 25, was one of the lucky soldiers in Iraq: he had personal body armor. It saved his life when a roadside bomb blew up, but the bomb still ripped up his arm and severed an artery. Helicopter evacuation saved his life, but “I last saw the [body armor] when it was pulled off my bleeding body” before being flown out, he said. Because it was so bloody, it was apparently burned as a biohazard. But in the rush to save his life no one filled out the form to document that, and when he was medically discharged from the Army against his will, he was told he had to return his body armor — or pay $700 for it. Paperwork to declare it lost or destroyed could take “weeks or months” to process, he was told, and that would delay his discharge, so he borrowed money from buddies and went home to West Virginia. “I had to pay for it if I wanted to get on with my life,” he said. Rebrook, who graduated with honors from West Point, hopes to go back to school and become a doctor. (Charleston Gazette) ...I like the guy, so I don’t want to see the look on his face when he finds out that the medical business has just as much paperwork.
Available in This is True: Book Collection Vol. 12