They are also his vocation. When not practicing law, Williams raises money to help financially strapped families visit their wounded Marines at the amputee center.
Although the Marine Corps and other groups help families visit wounded veterans, most programs allow for only two family members for a limited time. Places such as Fisher House -- which provides temporary lodging for military families at major medical centers -- are almost always full and have long waiting lists.
Williams' group tries to fill the void. Significantly, they bring families out for second and third visits, not just when the wounded first arrive.
``That's when the Marine is getting depressed,'' says Williams. ``He left his unit in Iraq, his family is in Omaha or wherever. The poor Marine faces multiple surgeries and is left by himself again.''
Williams has been instrumental in getting Hanson's wheelchair from Florida to California -- no small feat. Because of FAA rules pertaining to things such as batteries, you can't just fly an electric wheelchair across country, he says.
After many calls and dead ends, a Marine recruiter was located in Delray Beach, Fla., who is picking up the chair and delivering it to FedEx in Fort Lauderdale for crating and ground delivery to San Diego.
Hanson's chair is expected to arrive at the medical center soon after Christmas -- a gift from one Marine home to another. It's not exactly a happy ending, given the circumstances, but ``Operation Wheelchair'' reveals yet again what semper fi means to the Corps.
It also puts holiday angst in perspective.
For more information or to make a contribution to the injured Marine program, go to www.leaguelineup.com/injuredmarinefund/ . |