DAVs assistance helped Army veteran and family keep their home
For Army veteran Mike Hammons, his brave grandfather, who fought in World War II, was always his inspiration to serve his country.
“My grandfather was in the Marine Corps, and he was wounded in Iwo Jima,” said Hammons.
On Hammons’ 17th birthday, his mother signed for him to join the Army as soon as he finished high school. The day after graduation, Hammons did exactly that, and discovered he loved the camaraderie he found in the Army.
“The brotherhood – it’s the thing I miss,” said Hammons. "It's unlike anything."
Working with the Air Traffic Control Unit, Hammons’ work was “pretty intense.” He acquired much of his experience while stationed in Haiti. But during his deployment to South Korea, Hammons suffered an injury to his foot that led to a string of surgeries. The pain was incapacitating.
“I was 30 years old and couldn’t walk some days,” said Hammons.
By this time, Hammons had a wife and young family – people who relied on him. Yet, there were days that the intense, unwavering pain from his injury prevented him from working. At one point, Hammons and his family were at risk of losing their home.
“It was bad,” said Hammons about that daunting time in their lives.
Fortunately, Hammons heard fellow veterans talking about the difference that DAV had made in their lives. He took their wise counsel and reached out to a DAV benefits expert, and then everything changed. The errors in his disability rating were corrected, and the provided assistance allowed the Hammons family to keep their beloved home.
Hammons said he fully credits DAV for providing life-changing assistance in his life at a very critical time for him and his family. He noted that it’s the very thing DAV has been doing for every generation of veterans, even his grandfather.
“My grandfather was injured in Iwo Jima, and DAV helped him,” said Hammons. “I bet my grandpa didn’t think all those years ago when the DAV helped him that they would be as significant as they are today.”
