It’s never too late

First and foremost, Thank You for everything you guys do. I was at The Patriot Tour in NYC last night and it was truly amazing.

My father was a Navy Corpsman and Recon Marine in Vietnam. He received a Silver Star and 2 Purple Hearts. He was the toughest man I’ve ever known. If you flipped the switch and his eyes glazed over you had better start running and not look back. There are several stories I could share of people that triggered him did not have a good night. My high school principal and a Navy recruiter in Yonkers, NY can attest. After I read Lone Survivor I gave the book to my father. He had a similar experience in Vietnam on a long patrol. Of the 6 people on the recon mission only my Father and one other man returned alive. My father never spoke about the war or looked at his medals. It was something he always kept bottled up. I was allowed to ask direct questions which he would always answer but I never wanted to bring those memories back even though I know he lived with them everyday. Also after reading Lone Survivor I went online and found a Recon Marine alumni association. Without telling my Father I added him to the roster but added my address and phone number. The next day I received 6 emails from men that had served with my father. One was the Survivor from the mission I spoke about earlier. He sent me a 7 page email about my father and what he meant to him. We spoke on the phone that day and I gave him my fathers contact info. The next day he called my father and the two of them spent the next 8 hours on the phone speaking for the first time in over 40 years. About 2 weeks later my father decided to find a counselor to speak to about his time in Vietnam. I can’t explain how extraordinary this was from this man. I never in a million years would believe this man would take this step. It was so beyond what my family ever thought this Tough Ass Italian Bronx Boy would ever do. In June of 2016 my Father passed away and I know he had a clearer heart because of his time and sessions with the counselor he was speaking with. I wanted to share this as Marcus and Lone Survivor were the Catalyst for my Father getting help and this Never Quit story.

Thank You,
Adam

Author: Adam