Brain injured, stop-lossed, but proud to serve

Annapolis native tries to put life back together after war injuries

By E.B. FURGURSON III, Staff Writer

Published 03/22/09

As he was about to get out of his hitch in the Army two years ago, Daniel Alvear - diagnosed with traumatic brain injury from his first tour in Iraq - was "stop-lossed" and sent back for another tour. He was lucky - he made it home last week and is ready to get on with his life, hoping he can become himself once again.

Joshua McKerrow — The Capital Daniel Alvear hugs his oldest brother, Justin, as the Patriot Guard Riders, friends and family look on.

SLIDESHOW

Daniel Alvear returns from Iraq

Army Specialist Daniel Alvear arrives at BWI-Thurgood Marshall Airport returning home from his second tour in Iraq.

Alvear grew up around Annapolis and attended Severn River Middle School before his family moved to Charles County, where his mom works in the county Sheriff's Department. After attending high school there, he enlisted in the Army, wanting to serve his country.

While he is proud to serve, he laments...

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TBI - 2009-03-22 16:03:28

www.TheEasyEssay.com , a free site, can be used for educational rehabilitation purposes for stroke and TBI patients. It?s logical, color coded, repetitive functions have been accepted as a method for retraining and helping to reopen neural pathways.

RE: TBI
U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)
DCOEoutreach@us.imshealth.com
Thank You, Barry. I looked at the site and even did a trial run. I will email this information to our Health Resource Consultants and put it in our knowledge base for future inquiries.
Respectfully,
Erin

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barry morse - hallandale, FL - Karma: Bad

Amazing Man - 2009-03-22 13:43:29

I know Daniel on a personal level and I couldn't be more proud of him. I can only imagine how tough it was for him over there and eventhough it was hard he could still call me almost everyday and have some thing positive to say. His friends and the men he was on tour with said that he kept the from going crazy. His family and I are so lucky to know this great person. I wish all military families the best and I am so proud of our land and country because of men, just like Daniel, who were put in a horrible situation and came out a better person in the end.

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Kori Enkler - Colorado Springs, CO - Karma: Bad

"They do it because they love their - 2009-03-22 11:00:09

I doubt they go back for a mandatory 2nd tour because of love country. Her son has been ruined by his love, permanently. I doubt his country is going to show its love for him by giving him the medical care he is going to need for the rest of his life ( head injuries don't go away--they get worse) . I doubt his country will show its love for him by compensating him for the income he has lost due to his diminished capacity, they shoud, but they won't.

My heart goes out to him for his treatment , and to his mother for not talking him out of joining.

Let's hope the private sector can do something for the PFC by returning the love in the form of monetary gifts.

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Tina Schubbie - annapolis, MD - Karma: Terrible