LCpl Anthony Yanez

Broken Bow, OK

Marine Lance Corporal Anthony Yanez was on his first deployment when he was left a quadriplegic after an IED blast in Afghanistan on August 21, 2010. While on the fifth day of a resupply mission, LCpl Yanez was in a large convoy that had encountered difficult travel conditions requiring many stuck vehicles to be pulled from the sand. While attempting to free one such vehicle, an IED blast hit the driver’s side of his truck, causing serious injuries to LCpl Yanez.

Airlifted to the hospital at Camp Bastion, the closest base hospital, Anthony underwent emergency surgery to save his life. Later airlifted to Landstuhl, Germany, Anthony spent a week in the ICU before being stable enough for transport to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. It was at Walter Reed that Anthony met his four month old son for the first time. A month later, Anthony was sent to the James A. Haley Hospital in Tampa, FL where he remains undergoing therapies and treatments at this time.

LCpl Yanez enjoys basketball, weightlifting, and drawing. He loves spending time with his wife, Katreece and young son, Tristian and looks forward to living in a home that will allow him to interact easily with his young family. Anthony hopes to one day return to school. LCpl Yanez would like to thank those dedicating their time, money and talents to help build his specially adapted home. He is looking forward to living his life with fewer challenges than he had anticipated. A home built especially with his challenges in mind will ensure that he is able to regain some of the freedom and independence he fought to preserve.