A Wounded Warrior Returns to Work

Why did you enlist in the Army?

I wanted the educational opportunities the military offers. I've watched my parents serve entire careers in the military and go through college in the process. I saw life can be much easier with an education.

When did your Afghan tour start?

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I got a week and a half's notice to pack and leave on a plane the day after Thanksgiving 2008.

What did you do there?

Our mission was to travel the roads, find IEDs and blow them up. I was a mile and a half from the Pakistan border -- at that time, the hottest region of Afghanistan.

How were you injured?

A rocket landed 10 feet from where I was standing, blew me off my feet and knocked me out. After that, people noticed a rapid decline in my job performance. I was forgetting things and having trouble concentrating.

What was it like being home after your medical discharge?

I hated it. All I wanted to do was go back to Afghanistan. I wasn't being proactive. I was angry. I was injured. I couldn't articulate my thoughts, and I had no sense of control over anything.

How did things change?

I was introduced to the Wounded Warrior Project, for severely wounded veterans. I didn't reach out to them at first because of my pride. They got in touch with me for a fishing trip. I went and felt better afterward. That motivated me to do more. If it were not for the Project, I can't say that I would be alive today.

How did your job at Hewlett-Packard come about?

I was laid off from another job because of missing too much time for hospital appointments. I contacted the Project and was hooked up with Warriors to Work, a division of WWP. Within two weeks, I landed a job at HP doing network evaluations. Now I'm a senior network engineer.

What's the job like?

Internet-technology work can be cutthroat, but there's none of that at HP. We work together to meet the common goal of serving the customer. I have the camaraderie here that I had in Afghanistan. HP has provided training and given me time to attend my VA appointments, and the opportunities to grow are awesome.

John Miley is a Senior Associate Editor at The Kiplinger Letter. He mainly covers AI, technology, telecom and education, but will jump on other business topics as needed. In his role, he provides timely forecasts about emerging technologies, business trends and government regulations. He also edits stories for the weekly publication and has written and edited email newsletters.

He holds a BA from Bates College and a master’s degree in magazine journalism from Northwestern University, where he specialized in business reporting. An avid runner and a former decathlete, he has written about fitness and competed in triathlons.