Page 11 - DFCS News Magazine Summer 2014

ly to say the word.
wouldn’t come. hopeless.”
Making It.
He tried other words.
It’s
rick Loughary. been helped.
“He developed an ambi on to help others, as he had His determina on returned, and he changed remarka-
He couldn’t.
Then he went limp, as if to say, “Why try?
“We Then she excused herself, went to the ladies’ room and bawled, out of hope and fear and
Kathy leaned over him.
“You can’t give up,” she whispered.
need you.
sympathy for her husband in his terrible struggle.
“I want to get
You’re going to make it.”
Nothing came easy to Jim as he fought to “grow
But love can make the difference.
It’s hard to sur- Even in my coma I
up.”
to children’s books of the “Look, Jane, there’s Spot” variety. greatest problem was making his legs, hands and voice respond to
To read he first had to relearn his ABCs.
Then he progressed His
Surely, I
“. . . Yes, I am very proud that I was awarded the DFC, the highest avia- on combat award. On the other hand, I have no memory of the event, except the memory of what I was told in the current mental reality. I am truly blessed and praise God for a wonderful life. In 1967, I lost the memory of my life. In 1984, I earned a PhD in Psychology and, in 1995, I was invited to be the U.S. Representa ve to the Economic Union of Ukraine, when I taught Psychology and English at Dnepropetrovsk State University in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. My life has been more exci ng than any book I have ever read and any movie I have ever seen. Being a DFCS member is no less than another exci ng adventure.”
Scribe's Scribbles!
One of the "funner" events at the 2012 convention in Seattle was the Silent Auction. The convention planning staff at this year's convention in Tampa is promising an even better auction with more items and greater diversity! One thing that makes the auction a success are the items that members donate to the event.
Should you have an item that you think would be appropriate and applicable, send an email to jappel@dfcsociety.org and include a description and, if possible, attach a picture of the item! That way John (Executive VP of the Society and member of the Tampa Bay Area Chapter) can make sure we don't have any duplicates and then provide you with a shipping address for the Silent Auction item.
Last convention raised over $2,400 to benefit the Society's programs - can we do better? Challenge is on!!
Terri Sullivan...The Scribe
his brain’s commands.
ing food across the table to cu ng his meat and bringing it accu- rately to his mouth.
It took him nearly a year to go from sca er-
Wri ng even simple words like “cat” was an ordeal.
forget how to spell the word or how to print the le ers.
n’t write in a straight line, make the le ers the same size or keep
one from overlapping another. C A T.
But, finally, there it was
It took Jim nearly three years of sweat, strain, and determina on
to walk without supports.
leg cast, he moved to crutches.
disabled veterans who were bouncing a ball off a handball wall. dropped his crutches to see if he could maintain balance and move
From a wheelchair, and s ll wearing a One a ernoon he joined other
just a li le.
of frustra on, he picked up his crutches, went around to the back of the gym and pounded his head against the wall.
He reached for the ball
–
and fell.
Choking back tears
His father understood his feelings.
done a lot of things that most people thought you’d never be able
to do.
his father’s home, where Jim now spent periodic leaves, the elder
normal year
Back to the rails, now, and he was able to “I’ve got to make it,” he told him-
I know you can learn to walk.
Meade built a 30
-
Using the railings for support, Jim tried to walk.
–
-
take some steps without falling.
foot
“Jim,” he told him, “you’ve
Let’s get to work on it.” long wood pla orm with hip=high parallel
-
and kept falling un l, exhausted, he could no longer
railings.
got up, fell
pull himself up.
trying to coordinate the movements of his legs and arms.
formed these exercises for weeks un l he could crawl as well as a
Undaunted, he crawled up and down the pla orm, He per-
old infant.
“I’ve got to.”
From the parallel bars he went to canes, walking, weaving, stag-
self.
“You will, you will.”
And his father ====every minute, assured him,
gering, falling.
balance, to walk in a straight line, to maneuver street curbs. February 1970, he walked into Ward 13 with a big grin on his face
notes fast enough. the average student.
Slowly, over the months, he learned to maintain his In
–
a “hopeless vegetable,” Jim Meade was clearly making it.
and no canes.
Thirty months a er one authority had labeled him In September 1969 he had taken another long step,
From D to B.
enrolling in the two
outskirts of Portland.
his limping gait and occasionally slurred speech.
-
It was tough.
year MT. Hood Community College on the
“I felt so dumb, so worthless,” Jim recalls.
learn to add, subtract, and mul ply. to keep up.”
“Why, I even had to It was terrible not to be able
He became despondent.
had done for him,’ recalls his college counselor, psychologist, Pat-
He was self
He couldn’t take
Homework took him three mes longer than
“Then he remembered what people
-
conscious about
They
He would
He could-
–
a legible
He fell,
At
He
bly.
Jim received his diploma from MT. Hood in June 1970 and is now study-
In eight months he rose from a D to a B student.”
ing for a degree in psychology at Portland State University.
into work where I can use what I’ve learned to help people,” Jim ex-
plains.
vive this feeling.
must have felt the love of my family and ward mates, and felt my love for
Page 11
“A person who is deeply hurt feels very lonely.
them.
would have died.”
If I hadn’t, there would have been no reason to go on.
EXCERPT FROM DR. MEADE’S LETTER TO DFCS 3/5/14: