Resource Guide

Charleston Airman shows strength for recovery

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Daniel Bowles
  • 437th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. (AFNS) --  An explosives ordnance disposal technician with the 437th Civil Engineer Squadron mustered the strength to brace himself and stand for the first time in three weeks Aug. 21 after an explosion turned his deployment upside down.

"I just want to take each day slowly but surely. In the next week or two I heard I could be on crutches," said Tech. Sgt. Michael Williams. "The doctors are saying I'm doing really well."

The explosion occurred when Sergeant Williams came face-to-face with an antipersonnel landmine while deployed to Afghanistan.

The explosion left Sergeant Williams critically injured. He received initial care at a medical facility in Afghanistan. The following day, he was aeromedically evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany.

Less than a week after the blast of the explosion, a long voyage over Europe and the Atlantic Ocean began toward his final destination at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington.

When Sergeant Williams landed on his home soil Aug. 7, a cordial welcome was waiting for him from Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Norton A. Schwartz and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James Roy. The two joined him on the flightline aboard his plane, said Sergeant Williams, honoring the wounded warrior with a noteworthy homecoming.

"I didn't ask to meet them or anything -- they were already there when I got there. They were real nice. They asked how I was doing and everything, and made sure I was doing well," he said.

Shortly after, he was transported to Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where he spent the next few weeks undergoing care in the surgery ward, still unable to walk or stand on his own. The first stages of rehabilitation are under way, but Sergeant Williams said the process can easily last up to a year.

In addition to support from medical staff, his family has been ever-present, steadfast and supportive since the day he arrived at Walter Reed, he said, and the help hasn't stopped there.

Sergeant Williams' Air Force family has also taken to his side.

The Air Force Wounded Warrior program kicked into gear immediately to support Sergeant Williams after he was injured, and careful watch has been placed on his progress every step of the way, according to an Air Force Wounded Warrior consultant at Randolph AFB, Texas.

The Wounded Warrior program operates in support of the Office of the Secretary of Defense initiative to ensure all Department of Defense wounded warriors receive comprehensive information and guidance on all benefits and entitlements. The program begins at the point of injury and continues for life.

Because Sergeant Williams is recovering at a facility that falls outside of his home unit's chain of command, he has been assigned a family liaison officer. The officer serves as a wounded warrior's primary point of contact for information, assistance and communication with various agencies serving the member.

Fortunately for Sergeant Williams, his family liaison officer is not only a fellow EOD Airman, but also a long-time friend currently stationed near Walter Reed.

At Charleston AFB, other Airmen, including Tech. Sgt. Raymond Pomeroy, the EOD flight chief for the 437th CES, made a special trip to see Sergeant Williams and visited with him for a few days.

Sergeant Pomeroy said a great deal of work and preparation has been done at Charleston to set the stage for Sergeant Williams to return and receive his medical care from a local hospital closer to home.

"We're ready to get him back home where he belongs," he said.

Sergeant Williams said the soonest he plans to return home will be to celebrate Thanksgiving, depending on his circumstances, and also plans to take some time for vacation in December.

Until then, he said he is receiving first-class care from a well-rounded team of healthcare practitioners at Walter Reed.

"Any time I need something there's usually more than one person willing to help me with whatever it is I need or any problems, or anything," said Sergeant Williams. "And if it's not something they can do specifically right then, they're always willing to get someone else who can do it."

With all his needs being met around the clock, his doctors and nurses are kept busy, but for now, Sergeant Williams said he wants to continue to take things slow.

"You have to have a good attitude. Things could always be worse," he said. "I'm happy with the way things turned out. Like I said, it could be a lot worse. I can still see my son and everything else."

Sergeant Williams is one of many Airmen who have deployed to areas where dangers loom in austere conditions.

Although he nearly met a dire fate, the kind one cannot predict, one of the Air Forces' faithful was returned home.

His recovery challenges remain, but whatever resistance he encounters will be met by an Airman who has looked danger in the face and raised his right hand, said his commitment was stronger and that "nothing can stop the U.S. Air Force."