On February 21, 2004, on a routine patrol, SGT Clemon's patrol was first on the scene to a military vehicle crash on one of the major highways in South Baghdad. Kortney did what combat medics do, patched and prepped a Soldier for evacuation. Once the MEDEVAC (medical evacuation) arrived on site, SGT Clemons and three Soldiers lifted the stretcher and moved towards the waiting bird. Someone was watching. As time stood still, an insurgent triggered a command detonated IED (Improvised Explosive Device) directly underneath the moving Soldiers. Three were killed instantly. SGT Clemons lost his right leg.
Once back in the states I immediately tracked down SGT Clemons at Brooke Army Medical Center going through rehabilitation. Great seeing him. Made my heart happy. It just so happened that on the day I arrived SGT Clemons was to receive his Purple Heart from the Commander of the 1st Cavalry Division, General Peter W. Chiarelli. Check out the picture below.
I lost contact with SGT Clemons in 2008. Life goes on. It happens. Last October I attended a conference in Washington D.C. and guess who walked right by me? SGT Clemons. Or should I say Kortney. What a funny coincidence, he was going to hunt me down because he needed a character statement for his packet to....drum roll......re-enter service. He wanted to get involved with All Army Sports. Never panned out. As it turned out SGT Kortney Clemons, a right leg amputee took his adversity straight on. You know what he has been doing since 2005? Received his undergraduate degree from Penn State, won the 100m in the 2008 Paralympics in Tempe, AZ, featured in the documentary Warrior Champions, meet President Bush and currently attending Grad school at KU. Only the medics. Oh, I forgot to mention that he wrote a book in 2008: Amped: A Soldier's Race for Gold in the Shadow of War .
I invited Kortney to run with me into San Antonio. He agreed with enthusiasm. I literally just got off the phone with him tonight. Bad news. Kortney can't make it. He is in San Diego just about to go into a team meeting. Kortney made the United States of American Paralympic Team to go to the World Championships next year. He was on his way to a training camp in New Zealand. His event, the 200m.
No worries brother. You are in my prayers. Tomorrow is for you. Put on your spikes baby, I'm doing the 26 mile dash straight through the heart of Austin.
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Mike, got this email from Big Jayson Morgan after I let him know about your run....not sure if you remember, but he was the one that did chest compressions on Babbitt for 10 minutes straight in the back of the gun truck after he was hit, during the firefight.
ReplyDelete"Tell Mike I said hello. I donated some money last night. That cause is near and dear to me as well. I am very proud to know someone who is doing their part to raise money and awareness. I still remember every Soldier we lost over there. Besides SPC Babbit which obviously had an impact on me, the loss of SPC Burke and Odoms will always stay fresh in my memory. Not to mention the other medics we had who lost legs over there. That medical section really took a beating, but kept their heads up and saved others."
See you tomorrow!
Team Ramos