Stumpy's Blog

This blog is about my return to Walter Reed to get a new leg. I am an above-the-knee amputee. I lost my leg in April 2007 in Iraq while riding in a Humvee that was struck by an "explosively formed projectile" -- a molten metal jet stream released from a homemade roadside bomb. My left knee was shattered and later amputated at Walter Reed. I rushed through rehab to get back to Alaska quickly. But my leg continued to change, and now my prosthetic doesn't fit, and I need to begin again. I'll keep you posted on my progress and experience. This time, it will work.


Joshua Ferguson

I joined the Army in 1996 and my position is as a forward observer. My dad was in the Air Force and I'm the oldest of four with one brother and two sisters. My wife is Danielle, and we have three young children, J.J., 5 in June, Corinne, 3 in July, and little Madeline, 1 this month. My goal is to complete a full 20 years in the military, and then retire to become a teacher at the elementary or high school levels.

FEATURE STORY

New life & limbs

Read reporter George Bryson's account of how Ferguson ended up on his way back to Walter Reed.

Iron Dog - 11/11/2009 6:45 pm

Running and Snow - 11/9/2009 3:40 pm

Waszack - 10/29/2009 7:38 pm

Waiting for the rut! - 10/29/2009 6:20 pm

OK hunt was Awesome! - 10/20/2009 11:51 pm

Football - 10/5/2009 5:50 pm

Golf & Football - 10/1/2009 5:11 pm

Crossroads - 9/23/2009 11:47 am

Where were you? - 9/11/2009 7:34 pm

Facebook is crazy - 9/10/2009 1:39 pm

Two more - 9/9/2009 11:27 am

Hell of a year - 9/6/2009 7:24 am

New 4/25 guys at Walter Reed - 6/28/2009 4:23 pm

Tournament on Friday - 5/6/2009 2:25 pm

Still slacking - 4/29/2009 4:39 pm

Slacking - 4/7/2009 12:28 am

Less than a week - 3/24/2009 4:49 am

Still unclear - 3/23/2009 11:43 pm

More surgery? - 3/12/2009 7:06 pm

Gone again - 3/9/2009 4:41 pm

Good Morning! - 3/3/2009 3:37 am

I hate sleep! - 2/20/2009 12:08 am

Still unclear

Comments (0) |

Well I had my MRI on Saturday. I should say we attempted the MRI. I went in and all of a sudden it felt as if something was being ripped from the inside of my wrist. Apparently I have more shrapnel in me that I didn't know about. I don't feel anything from the rest of the shrapnel because the EFP that hit us was made of copper. Not magnetic, whatever is in my wrist apparently is. Guess it's back to the good ol CT and PET scans. I'll keep you posted.

Saturday was still a pretty good day overall. I was presented with a worked over M1 Garand from the group M1's for Vets.

http://www.m1forvets.com/Home_Page.php

JJ Oshea ste up the shoot and presentation. JJ and I had a great time and if any of you guys are checking this out, thanks again. JJ had the camera so we got ALOT of pics, not sure how many useable ones. He reallllly liked to get close-ups of the rifles. We had to pop smoke a bit early, unable to finish the match, because of the MRI.

I got my hand crank tuned up this week. Hoping to find a route to be able to take it in to the hospital everyday. I've been taking the Segway, which saves on gas, but it would be nice to get a bit of excercise. The only issue with the handcrank is that it sets so low to the ground. I would have to take the sidewalk/streets for at least a mile or so and I'm a little worried about drivers seeing me on that thing. Gotta love the DC drivers!

I messed around with my mountain bike also. That didn't end up too well. The final time I crashed I lay there for a good fifteen minutes. I saw some other AK's riding a bike, so I thought I'd give it a try. I found out today that they were all wearing clips and their sockets were cut away so they could pedal. Oops! I'm driving in today and bringing the bike. Adelle, one of the physical therapists here, is bringing in some of her old pedals that I can use. Bo and her are going to help me get everything set up, and I'll look at getting the socket cut. Keeping my fingers crossed. Lord knows I need it, the time off my leg kind of added a bit of "winter weight". No worries, just the fuel tank for the looove machine!

Enjoy the Redoubt show! Missing home as usual. Until next time-Ferg

All of the guys in Afghanistan, stay safe and I'll talk to you later


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