Stryker Brigade News

Michael is doing well. He went with Cindy and a couple other soldiers to the movies last night. Cindy said they were all laughing pretty good at the new Ashton K. movie Guess Who. I stayed home to rest up a bit. I think my old age is catching up with me. Energy levels are not what they used to be. LOL. I put up a few new pics last week in Michael's album here in the gallery. I was looking at all of them last night and it amazes me the changes he has gone through the past two years.

We will be away for a while starting
April 2nd for a trip to Aspen Colorado. Occupational Therapy in conjunction with the Winter Sports
Clinic is sponsoring a ski trip for a number of the soldiers who have been wounded. I sure hope they don't expect me to ski. ha ha! It is a week long trip and my internet connection will probably be non existant. Wish us luck.

Michael's new arm blew out again. This time the team decided to get him a completely new one to replace the defective one. I sure hope it works right this time. It is pretty frustrating to us all right now. Next week he will receive his body activated arm. No electronics to have to worry about with this one. From what I have seen, most of the guys prefer this arm anyway. More dependable and easier to repair if something goes wrong.

Michael had a CAT scan on his head yesterday along with e-rays of his left arm and knee. These x-rays will be followed by MRI's in a few weeks to give the docs a better idea of why his arm is bothering him at the incision site. His knee must have been roughed up a bit somewhere along the line as it is now starting to bother him a bunch. We did find out that he is double jointed during the exam however. Hmmmm. never knew that about him. I guess parents are not All Knowing. :-)

We were informed that his OT tech is moving to another job, so Michael will be working with someone else starting next week. Capt. Katie Yancosek will be sorely missed by many in the OT dept. She should be a Lt. Col. by now from what I have seen in the past few months. You know the type, excellent bedside mannery, knowledgeable in all areas of her specialty and the Go To Person that everyone goes to when they have a question. She will be sorely missed by many and I wish her all the best in her future career as a fine Army officer treating our wounded.

Peggy Baker from FirstResponse came by again. Her and her husband sure have been a blessing for my sanity the last few months. I pray her group gets all the help they can for they do plenty on their own to help the soldiers and their families. (Thanks for the easter basket of goodies, my waistline will be growing a bit this weekend)

Michael said to say hi to everyone and sure misses his guys in the troop. Even though many of them have gone on their separate ways, he still wishes he was back at Lewis doing his job. I can not count how many times he has said he really misses his job. I can see the hurt in his eyes when he thinks about how things were. I pray every day that he finds a job that fulfills him as much as being a soldier. Pretty tough slot to fill for a guy like him.

I am still doing battle with the bureaucacy of it all. It seems every body wants to help until you ask for it, then it is like no one is at home. I have decided to move my way up the chain and become a very squeeky wheel for a while. I figure it can't hurt and may get some replies from those in charge. ;-) I have met so many people here that are in the same boat as I and it pains me to think that more isn't being done to aleviate the stress for these families with a little assistance. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. The good news is a senator and his wife are willing to assist me with some clout along with a general or two. I sure hope we can get some things done to help change things for those that follow.

Anyway, have a great weekend and a happy Easter. God bless and take care.
Mike Oreskovic
Proud Parent of a Soldier