Leave no veteran behind: Surviving veterans and their caregivers

On Memorial Day, we honor the soldiers who are continuing to grapple with their combat injuries, and we honor their family and professional caregivers and advocates. These are the men whose stories have appeared here in the last year:

Army Sgt. 1st Class Chris Blaxton survived the blast from an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Iraq. He has received help from the web site CaringBridge, his caregivers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and his niece, Anna Carncross.

Michael O'Neal, a veteran who served in Korea, has been cared for at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Army Staff Sergeant Brian Pearce survived in IED blast in Iraq. Dr. Kara Gagnon, director of low vision optometry at the West Haven, Connecticut veterans hospital, has been caring for him. The Blinded Veterans Association advocates on behalf of soldiers like Brian.

Sgt. Tony Wood, survivor of an explosion from an IED in Iraq, has been helped by the 10 in 10 Project, and the Warrior Transition Unit of Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii.

It was wonderful to hear from him: A social networking site for a wounded Iraq veteran

Anna Carncross set up a CaringBridge web site for her uncle, Army Sgt. 1st Class Chris Blaxton. The 46-year-old soldier from Okemos, Mich., was severely injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq in October.

He was airlifted to Germany and wound up at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington a few days later.

"We didn’t necessarily want anyone and everyone to be able to read about Chris but wanted all of his friends and family to be able to visit the site as often as they wanted," Anna said. "When Chris first got hurt, there were phone calls and e-mails going everywhere and it was impossible to make sure that everyone was updated." She said posting on the site saved time for the family so they could take care of Chris, his wife, Sabine, and their four children.

"It was also a way that everyone could reach out to Chris by leaving comments for him to read," Anna said. "It kept everyone up to date on Chris’ progress. Once he was able to, he started to update the page himself and it was wonderful to hear from him."

In June, a large homecoming was held for Chris at Okemos High School.

Advice for family members: Keep your friends and family posted by using a free web site like this one.

Read about a similar personal health networking website.

Thanks to Vince Little for the source story in the July 18 issue of Stars and Stripes.