Darci Marchese, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – When a military service member is injured, it can take a long and painful toll on the whole family. That’s why one local group is trying to ease some of that pain.
The Walter Reed Society, created in 2004, established a fund that assists warriors, especially those injured in combat, and their families with unexpected financial costs.
The help is proving to be a lifesaver for a U.S. Air Force man and his mother.
Michelle Otero, of Elmira, N.Y., has been staying on the campus of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda. Her 24-year-old son Jeremy Boston lost his lower right leg and broke several major bones in a car accident in Florida near his base in July.
Just this week, he underwent his 12th surgery after an infection developed in his arm.
Otero left her job in New York to help her son recover and the bills continue to pile up back home.
“I have not received a paycheck since July,” she says.
She was directed to a charity who then recommended the Walter Reed Society. She says she filled out an application and less than a week later, she received six checks.
“It’s more than I imagined, more than I even hoped for,” she says choking back the tears.
The Walter Reed Society made a house payment, paid her home and car insurance, covered a car payment, and paid some utility bills.
She says the assistance has overwhelmed her and she and her son are grateful.
If you’d like to donate to the Walter Reed Society, you can make your donation double in value. If you donate by Monday, Select Auto Imports will match all donations up to $10,000.
Follow Darci Marchese and WTOP on Twitter.
(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
