Development of the Wounded Warrior Mentor Program 

As a result of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, many severely wounded soldiers and Marines are medically evacuated to Military medical facilities. While the military medical system has excelled in saving lives - the “save rate" exceeds 90%, unprecedented in modern warfare - the number of critically wounded soldiers also is unprecedented. As well as the trauma of enduring lost limbs, many soldiers suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBl).

While the dedicated staffs at the military facilities have excelled in medical treatment, they do not have the resources to provide one-on-one support to the combat wounded to help them make life decisions after recovery. Recognizing this shortfall, four members of the Class of 1958, led by Lee Miller, started an informal program in November 2004 to help Wounded Warriors at Walter Reed focus on life after the military. At any one time there are hundreds of wounded outpatients recovering at the military facilities, but only about 20% percent of those stay in the military. A significant number leave the service, transi­tion into the VA medical system, and then move into civilian life.

Many organizations, such as the Army Wounded Warrior Program, Disabled Sports USA, Fisher House Founda­tion, and the American Council on Education, are providing almost endless recreational and career-related activities. Walter Reed Nurse Case Managers – the nurses assigned to each Wounded Warrior - are responsible for holistic care, from injury to wellness. While it has improved to 1:18 from around 1:50, the ratio of nurse case managers to patients, however, does not provide for one-on-one assistance to help the soldier either make the transition to a productive civilian life or a return to a military career. Thus, the mentor role broadened.

As the word got out among Wounded Warriors, the demand for Mentors skyrocketed and quickly outstripped the Class of '58's assets.  The Mentor Program now serves over 170 Wounded Warriors, and that number grows daily.  Mentors now number over 100, representing 30 West Point classes, USAFA '64, Special Forces members and other groups. 

Hank Kenny '61, a Viet Nam amputee, already was volunteering at the Walter Reed Amputee Ward as a peer counselor when Lee Miller approached him to recruit West Point Class of '61 Mentors. With the help of Dick Buckner '61, Hank agreed to contact classmates in the DC area, and soon more graduates from that class were involved.  The number of combat­ wounded asking for Mentors continued to grow, however, and soon outstripped the com­bined resources of the Classes of '58 and '61, so other classes were invited to join the Mentor Corps.

What started as an informal effort, pri­marily under the leadership of Lee Miller and Hank Kenny, has grown into a mature, well-organized program. Each new class group receives a two-hour orientation class and a "five-paragraph field order", the basic document describing the program. There is so much information for the Mentors to digest, however, that a website was deemed essential. Bob Hampton '61 and Sam Weiss x-‘61 have developed a website http://www.wpwoundedwarriormentorprogram.com that is sponsored by West-Point.Org and will contain comprehensive information about the program and links to other related programs. It will be updated routinely. 

Wounded Warrior Ronnie Hodges with his Mentor Bill Johansen '56 (on left) and '56 Class Leader and a Mentor Mike Conrad

The Program also has the full support of the Walter Reed leadership. COL Horoho and her staff are fully on-board, supportive, and cooperative. As a result of the much-publicized fallout at Walter Reed early this year concerning outpatient care, the Army created the Warrior Transition Bri­gade. Upon taking command of the Transition Brigade, COL Terry McKenrick '85 stated: "The success of this mission is important to our deployed soldiers. They need to focus on their difficult combat tasks, knowing that, if injured, they will receive the best possible care. We also need to reassure the American people that the welfare of their serving sons, daughters, spouses, and family members is our number-one priority." Most of the members of his chain of command are combat arms Iraqi/Afghanistan war veterans.

The program uses a team concept. The service academy graduate Mentors can turn to other resources for help: Nurse Case Managers, a professional academic counselor, an orthope­dic surgeon consultant, a psychologist, a VA aptitude assessor and profession counselor, a combat surgeon, and a Congressional Coun­selor representative. Mentors typically meet with their Wounded Warriors at least monthly and talk to them on the phone or exchange e-mail weekly to establish a bonding, surro­gate-father relationship to help them formulate and prioritize their goals for remaining in the military or returning to civilian life. Foremost of these goals is achieving a meaningful life and fulfilling profession in the three-to-five­ year period after they are wounded, including a smooth transition from Walter Reed to the VA medical system and into the follow-on Mentor program.

While the Mentor program at Walter Reed is highly successful, organizers discovered sig­nificant problems when the Wounded Warriors left Walter Reed. At home or in VA hospitals, they are without fellow warrior buddies and in a strange and not necessarily understanding environment. Parents call back to Walter Reed Mentors for a wide range of reasons, to include seeking advice on medication addiction, or to ask the Mentor for help because the soldier or Marine remains isolated in his/her room and the parents do not know where to turn.

Predictably, our Follow-On Mentor Program is an increasingly vital part of the mentor effort. Recognizing this need early in the program, the organizers contacted Classmates to work with patients discharged from Walter Reed. As the Mentor Program itself has grown, the importance of the Follow-on Program has grown with it.

Bob Tredway '58 set up the Follow-on Program, but has since turned over the reins to Dick Buckner '61.  West Point classes have recruited a number of Classmates throughout the country who Dick Buckner can contact when a Wounded Warrior leaves the protected, familiar environment of Waiter Reed and needs to reach out for reassurance nearby. Other classes are following suit, contacting Classmates throughout the U.S. Tredway records volun­teers in a consolidated database, to be contacted to serve as Follow-on Mentors as the need arises.  The Follow-on Mentor works closely by phone and e-mail with the Walter Reed Mentor until a hand-off is complete.

West Point Societies around the country are helping identify Follow-on Mentors and have given the Wounded Warriors and their families outstanding support. The Oregon, Washington-Puget Sound, and Houston So­cieties have helped with paralyzed Wounded Warriors, meeting them upon arrival and assisting them in their transitions to the new areas.

Other West Pointers are making significant contributions as well. Lee Anderson '61, who recently donated a Rugby Center to West Point, offers to place Wounded Warriors in jobs in his nation-wide company. Procter & Gamble, which has a number of West Pointers within its management structure, has a special unit for recruiting Wounded Warriors (only after they have made the decision to leave military service) and has placed several combat-injured West Pointers.

A significant new aspect of the Mentor Program is the close collaboration of Mentors with the U.S. Army Division Liaison NCOs assigned to Walter Reed to assist Wounded Warriors from their divisions. West Point Men­tors now work closely with these LN NCOs to identify soldiers who want and need Mentors. Dick Schonberger '58 has led the way in this effort with the 1O1st Airborne Division, arrang­ing for free Association membership and sup­port from local chapters when the Wounded Warrior heads home. Other Mentors plan to follow his model. Paul DeVries '61 has picked up the 82d Airborne Division; John Herren '58 the 1st Cav Division; Bruce Holmberg '61 the 1st Infantry Division; Dick Buckner '61 the 173rd Airbome Brigade  and the 10th Mountain Division, along with George Lawton '58; Hank Kenny '61 has Special Forces; and Ellen Haring '84 the Reserve Components.

Wounded Warrior Ryan Hollin '03 lost a leg below the knee to a suicide car bomb attack in April 2005. He had not given any thought to "life after the Army," but working with his Mentor, Lee Miller, he made the decision to medically retire. While he was recovering and using his prosthetic, Ryan learned to snowboard and returned to West Point to take the obstacle course. He says of the Mentor Program: "The thing that Lee really helped me to do was network through other Graduates. That's how Procter & Gamble got wind of me and started me in their recruiting process." He joined P&G as a Material Supply Manager at a plant that makes Tide products. He also is a member of the P&G Wounded Warrior recruiting team, along with Steve Korach '69 and Rich Register '71. CPT Alton McCallum, also '02, was an Army football player serving his second combat tour, this one with the 1st ID in Afghanistan, helping the Afghan Army build and plan fire support for forward operating bases, when he was severely wounded in the leg. While at Walter Reed, he and his Mentor, Lee Miller, developed a plan for Alton's future - remain on Active Duty. He will join his wife in Wisconsin, where she is starting medical school at the University of Wisconsin, and join the Milwaukee Recruiting Battalion. When asked what he found most valuable about the Mentor program, he said: "It kept me focused on my future."

Another West Point Wounded Warrior and former Army football player is an inspiration to everyone who comes in contact with him. LTC Greg Gadston '89 was a 1st ID FA battalion commander in the dangerous Yarmouck region of Baghdad when he sustained multiple arm and leg wounds in an lED attack, losing both legs above the knees. Greg's undaunted spirit and grit are nothing short of inspirational. The first time Bruce Holmberg met Greg, he was walking on his C­ legs only four months after he was wounded. He has been selected for a Senior Service College and wants to remain in the Army. The Mentor team will continue working closely with him to help him to achieve those goals.

By now, it should be clear what the program means to Wounded Warriors who choose to participate. What does it mean to the Mentors? Cy Shearer '61 put it best recently: "I get far more than I give from my association with these soldiers." For Lee and his three colleagues who started this program, the personal satisfaction in knowing that something so fundamentally good is helping so many in need is deservedly very high. The vision that these four had-Lee Miller, Pete Brintnall, John Herren, and Bob Tredway-was remarkable.

A closing word about Walter Reed. Men­tors agree that the Wounded Warriors medical care there is superb-and with the advent of the new Warrior Transition Brigade under COL McKenrick, the day-to-day out-patient management and leadership of wounded soldiers already has begun to go from good to great. We know from the Dole-Shalala Report that there are things that need to be fixed - the disability rating process remains a maze that even Mentors struggle to under­stand. What can be reported is that, while we may encounter issues, the team of Doctors, Physical Therapists, Nurse Case Managers, Counselors, Transition Brigade leadership, division LN NCOs, and Mentors all are focused on pro­moting our Wounded Warriors' transition and healing process.

Our gratitude for the service and sacrifice of our Wounded Warriors must never go unrecognized. The need for Mentors at Walter Reed will continue to grow as we work with the division LN NCOs to identify more Wounded Warriors who want Mentors. As the demand for more Mentors throughout the country grows daily, we all hope every graduate will help in some way: as a Mentor, by assisting in a West Point society, or by helping to place soldiers in satisfying, productive careers. Supporting this undertaking embodies the very essence of the West Point motto: Duty, Honor, Country. If you are interested in being a Follow-on Mentor, contact Dick Buckner at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Classes interested in joining the Mentor program at Walter Reed should contact Lee Miller at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for information.