From despair to forgiveness: injured vet shows way

By Steve Mocarsky smocarsky@timesleader.comStaff Writer

WILKES-BARRE – Students at were impressed that U.S. Army Lt. Col. Greg Gadson was able to lead a productive and inspirational life, given that he lost both legs after a roadside bomb ejected him from his vehicle in Iraq in 2007 and nearly cost him his life.

They were even more amazed that he was able to forgive those who planted the bomb.

Invited by Wilkes psychology professor Robert Bohlander to speak to his positive psychology class Monday morning, Gadson spent about 45 minutes talking about his experiences to more than 100 students and members of the public who attended a talk Monday afternoon at the Dorothy Dickson Darte Center.

Gadson began his talk by crediting his colleagues.

“I’m here today because my team saved my life. I could never say that enough,” he said before explaining how he lost his legs.

After returning from a deployment in Afghanistan in 2005, he received a phone call from a senior officer congratulating him on his recent promotion to lieutenant colonel and his selection to battalion command, as well as orders to take command of a new field artillery battalion for deployment to Iraq.

He said pride, poise and team were the three words instilled in him during his days playing football at West Point, and he thought of those three words as he prepared to build his new unit.

Team, Gadson said, is the most important of the three. “Team is about selflessness, not selfishness. … Life is not about what’s in it for me. Let’s worry about what’s in it for us, what’s in it for the team, for our country,” he said.

Gadson’s unit began patrolling in Baghdad in March 2007. On May 7, 2007, while returning to headquarters from a memorial service for two soldiers who were killed, his vehicle was struck by the bomb.

“I laid on the side of the road in the darkness literally bleeding to death. First Sgt. Frederick Johnson would find me on the road already unconscious. … PFC Brown, as the acting medic in my personal security detachment, would be responsible for getting the tourniquets on my legs that ultimately saved my life. So I say again, I’m here today because my team saved my life,” he said.

When he arrived at a hospital, Gadson said, many others worked to save his life.

“It’s been a challenge of mine not to let their efforts fall in vain, to find the personal courage to live up to what pride, poise and team meant. Just because I was injured, I did not stop being a team member. I was still part of the team. I am still part of the team. And I found myself thinking about those three words and what it meant to me and whether or not I had the courage to live up to them as I began my recovery,” Gadson said.

He arrived at Walter Reed Army Medical center with his legs still intact. Over the next two weeks, he lost his left leg and then his right. His right arm was severely damaged and he lost use of it for two months.

“I was essentially down to one functional limb. It was probably the lowest point of my journey in dealing with what happened to me. And I will tell you, I tried to quit. I tried not to have the courage to continue on. But some part of me, some part of who I am, some part of all the experiences that embody me, from my parents raising me to my time at West Point to my time served in the Army wouldn’t let me quit because that’s not who I am, that’s not what I represent,” Gadson said.

“So for me, those words – pride, poise and team – meant that regardless of the situation, regardless of the difficulty, it was my duty, it was my responsibility to make the most of my situation,” he said.

Asked by a student about why it made him uncomfortable to be called inspirational, Gadson said it’s unrealistic to talk to a group of strangers for 30 minutes and inspire them. “I believe inspiration comes from within. … But I’m also willing to acknowledge that perhaps something about my story, something that I may say may help you find inspiration within yourself,” he said.

Bohlander noted Gadson mentioned earlier to his psychology class that he had no malice towards the people who planted the bomb that cost him his legs and asked him to explain that.

Gadson said he’s often asked what has been the key to his recovery.

“The answer to that, to me, is forgiveness. … When I woke up at Walter Reed, my legs were still intact, but they weren’t in good shape and I would eventually lose them. For some reason, I never felt angry about that. I never felt angry about being in Iraq, I never felt angry about who might have did this to me. Honestly, guys, I never even cared who did this to me,” he said.

“This is my belief: Whatever it is in your life that you’re holding onto that you haven’t forgiven, it just holds you back. It’s an anchor, something you’re dragging along that many people will never see but you, because you’re dragging it along.… If you can’t effect the past, why spend any time or energy on it? … Everything I have gained has been in front of me by putting my past behind me,” Gadson said.

Erin Schneider, a junior psychology major, said she thought Gadson was inspirational.

“I really felt that was awesome, how he automatically forgave them and no longer held any type of anger in his heart. I thought that was really powerful,” Schneider said.

Christopher Kasian, a grad student in educational leadership, said it was “unbelievable to see such an inspirational person who believes he’s just an ordinary average guy doing what he was meant to do. I thought at the end when he talked about forgiveness, that was the key to it all. He is who he is today because he was able to forgive those who committed such a heinous act.”

Joe Urban, 28, of Nanticoke, respected Gadson’s humility, and he was also impressed by his forgiveness. “It’s hard for me to fully grasp how he could be that forgiving.”

Brianna Edgar, a sophomore psychology major at Wilkes, said Gadson was “a living example” of pride, poise and team. “He practices what he preaches.”