My husband, Medically Retired SSGT Randall Martel, and I are requesting any help that you can provide. Our wish is to take our family to Disney World. We would need (6) 4-8 day park hopper passes to Disney World for our family. (from 12/2/12-12/8/12) using a Disney vacation club belonging to the head of the family. Prior to my husband’s 18 month deployment, he was a police officer which was his dream job. We are both foster parents, taking in troubled teens, and I was a fulltime student working on my bachelors’ degree with hopes of going to law school to become a lawyer. Things did not go as planned and in every tragedy there are miracles peeking around corners setting you on the path to lessons learned. At the end of my husband’s 18 month deployment he was shipped to Fort Campbell Kentucky for three months of treatment then to Fort Dix New Jersey for another three months of treatment. My daughters Chelsea, Kira, Shelbie and myself followed spending our life savings to be near him while he was getting treatment for PTSD and a Traumatic Brain Injury. After more than 24 months the military finally put him on MRPII Orders, which made allowed him to receive treatment closer to home at Hanscomb Air Force base around 5 hours away. My dream of going to law school however was just not possible. My job became driving my husband around to his doctor’s appointments which made it impossible to find a job or professor that would allow me to take time off. During the switch between the military MRPII orders and the VA compensation, we almost lost our home, this was very stressful on the whole family. We've been learning to live with PTSD and a brain injury but it has been a struggle from day one. We have endured many hours of our own therapy with counselors to learn how to deal with everything. One of the suggestions my counselor had for me was to get out of the house and volunteer my time somewhere. This allowed me to have "me" time and do something that I love. I searched around and found that I could volunteer my time with the local Public Defenders Office. Ironically, this has since turned into a clerkship under the Vermont Law Reading Program which (while I haven’t gotten paid for the last 4 and a half years) allows me to sit for the bar exam after four years instead of going to law school. I will be sitting for the exam in February. The state of Vermont has recently asked us to adopt a teenage girl in need of a home, which we did. We now have four girls who have endured through all the craziness of life with a parent with a brain injury. Obviously, Disney World tickets for all six of us would be a lot to ask, so we would appreciate any help at all. Randall and Jessica Martel
U.S. Army (Severely Wounded Veteran)
1985 - 2009
Wish Fulfilled By:
- Emily donated $20.00
- Audra donated $20.00
- Justin donated $20.00
- Alan donated $1,160.00
Thank You Message from the Hero:
There are no words to express our gratitude to the gracious donors that made it possible for our family to visit Disney World. For my husband, not only was this a wonderful vacation surprise, it also let my husband know that his duty to his country is appreciated and remembered. Although, my husbands view remains “one need not receive thanks for defending one’s country” and “so many people gave so much more”, this sure felt like a BIG HUG and THANKS a BUNCH to me!!!! I know my husband and I will never forget the kindness of this gift and vow to pay it forward to other veteran’s in need. Sincerely grateful, The Martels PS: we will send pictures as soon as we get them!!! BIG HUG to ED and ALAN!!!!
- Randall & Jessica Martel
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