Martin Chevrolet of Cleveland, in partnership with GallantFew and other Houston-area Chevrolet dealerships, surprised a wounded war veteran with a new car on July 27, 2018, during the Houston Astros Game at Minute Maid Park.
“Every year the Houston-area Chevrolet dealers get together and purchase a new Chevy car or truck, and work with a wounded warrior group to find someone in need,” said Janet Martin-Clark, general manager of Martin Chevrolet.
Garth Roe, of Houston, was picked as this year’s recipient. For 10 years, Roe devoted his life to the U.S. Marine Corps, serving tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq as a Marine Raider.
Roe, a now-retired staff sergeant, was critically injured on Aug. 1, 2009, when he was shot in the hip while on patrol.
“The gunshot lacerated my femoral vein and missed my femoral artery by three millimeters. While my team provided medical care to me, they were still under small arms fire by approximately 30 enemy combatants,” Roe wrote in his bio for GallantFew.
His team was able to deter the assault and transport him to a hospital for treatment.
“From the time of injury [until] the time my team was able to get me to the hospital, I lost over half my blood and was slipping in and out of consciousness due to blood loss,” Roe said.
He underwent a few surgeries in Afghanistan before being transported to Bethesda Naval Hospital. During the next five years, Roe endured 80 surgeries to save his leg.
For Martin-Clark, who is married to a retired Navy sailor, being part of a project to help a member of the U.S. military has blessed her as much as the wounded warriors who receive the vehicles.
“I am really passionate about the military. When you see them and their families, and see what they have been through, to bring a little bit of happiness to their life means a lot,” Martin-Clark said. “I can’t put myself into what he has gone through, of course. I just wish more Americans would support our military.”
In addition to receiving the car, Roe threw out a pitch at the start of the game and was invited to share a suite to view the game with the Chevrolet dealers who participated.
According to GallantFew’s website, the organization’s mission is “to prevent veteran isolation by connecting new veterans with hometown veteran mentors, thereby facilitating a peaceful, successful transition from military service to a civilian life filled with hope and purpose.”
For more information on GallantFew, go online to www.gallantfew.org.
Vanesa Brashier, editor@bluebonnetnews.com