Life during and after Harvey: Evacuating, rescuing, patrolling

Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath are having a major impact on people in Baytown and surrounding communities. This is the account of one person, Justin Pedersen, of life during and after the storm.
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The Pedersen family during a vacation this year

“Even with Hurricane Harvey hitting 175 miles away in Rockport, we still parked our cars up off the street in the event that we had some pooling water. My home is classified as ‘X’ on the Effective Flood Insurance Rate Map. This is the lowest category available for flood zoning risk. Based on conversations with my neighbors, we estimate less than 8% of our homes had flood insurance. No one could have predicted what was to come over the next couple of days.

“I stayed up Saturday night watching the water inch closer. About 5:45 in the morning, the water level passed our front tree. Shortly after, the power went out. I immediately woke the family. We started moving electronics and valuables upstairs. We also frantically cleaned out a section of the garage for my daughter’s car, which wasn’t under full coverage insurance. Little did we know, it wouldn’t make a difference. By 7:15, it was coming through the front door. As the water continued to climb, our immediate neighbors came over due to having a one-story house and two small children. My neighbor and I then went to check on other neighbors, including the elderly couple across the street. It was a surreal scene with 4 feet of water in the street, people standing knee deep on their front porches, and others having fun floating in pool floats.

Their neighborhood on Monday

“In less than two hours, the heroes showed up. They had five or six boats taking people to Highway 146 for evacuation. With my family upstairs starting to pack, I joined one of the boat teams and helped get multiple families to the front of the subdivision. Wading through the water was extremely cold, and the rain was incessant. Yet these volunteers came from other neighborhoods and even other towns risking their lives and their boats to help get our families to safety. Later in the day, we got my family out as well. We rode in the back of a pickup truck to a friend’s house. I wish I knew the name of the guy who selflessly ran us across town during the pouring rain. Some families decided to stay, thinking the worst was behind us. Among them were the elderly couple across the street, since they had nowhere to go. Unfortunately, they were wrong.

“After 36 hours without sleep, I fell asleep on my friend’s floor while waiting for my wife to check on a potential place for us to stay. When I woke up at 4:30 a.m., reality set in that this wasn’t all a nightmare. A quick glance at the TV news showed that another band of rain had dumped more water on our area during the night. Checking the water level gauge of Cedar Bayou, it had surpassed the 500-year flood level and was continuing to rise. I pulled up the Devinwood Facebook page and immediately realized how much worse the situation was. Several families were citing waist-deep water inside their homes and begging for rescue. I didn’t have a boat, but I thought maybe I could find a rescue team to help. So I jumped in our borrowed vehicle and ran up to the Cedar Bayou bridge. It was under water on both sides and the current was very strong. More and more volunteers showed up, but it was pretty apparent that the current and water level weren’t going to permit us to cross or safely deploy boats.

A view of the Pedersens' house from a boat

“Meanwhile, my wife was compiling a list of addresses of families calling for rescue on Facebook. The number was growing rapidly and now included our elderly neighbor, who recently had a heart transplant. I finally found a way around by going out to Horace Mann Junior School and heading down FM 1405. Shortly after arriving, the heroes once again showed up with their boats. We literally had over 10 boats running around, trying to find those in need. The water was over 7 feet deep in some places, giving them enough depth to use their outboards. The problem was they couldn’t exactly go door to door without risking their motors hitting items in people’s yards. With my wife and another neighbor coordinating the calls for help, I relayed those addresses to the boats. I couldn’t get to the back of the neighborhood, but I did go door to door on the first three streets trying to urge people to get out because Cedar Bayou was still rising. Once again, those heroes risked their lives and boats to help strangers. I was on the boat that helped rescue my elderly neighbor. It was a very sad sight, as he was shivering and struggling to talk. One of the heroes gave him his raincoat to offer a little protection from the battering rain. When we parted ways, they were being taken to a shelter by yet another hero.

“It’s been an exhausting week. To make it worse, talk of looting and people being held up at gunpoint has my already beaten-down neighbors nervous that what little they have left is exposed. To try to provide them with some peace of mind, I set up a checkpoint to monitor in/out privileges to the neighborhood. Everyone has been extremely grateful. We now have a rotating shift and multiple people on post at any given time. According to Baytown police officers who we are working with, we are the only neighborhood with this sort of checkpoint. My neighbors can’t get back to their homes due to the water still being 4 feet deep in some places, but at least they have one less thing to worry about. I hope and pray they are getting some rest as our journey of rebuilding hasn’t even begun yet.”

Batman the cat

Footnote about the family’s pets:

“We have two dogs (Khloe and Slinky) and three cats (Maverick, Snow and Batman). When we left on Sunday we got them all out except Batman, who we couldn’t find. I went back on Monday to find him, but I couldn’t. My daughter was ready to swim back herself that evening to find him, but the water was rising again. Finally after a second trip back on Tuesday, I found him hiding inside my daughter’s mattress. He had dug a hole through the bottom of her box spring. My daughter was hysterically happy when Daddy brought Batman home. She woke up from a dead sleep to see me standing over her with her cat.”

John Sommerfeld: Young rebel learns life's lessons

When you see all the tattoos and piercings, the words “dork” and “nerd” don’t come to mind.

But that’s how John Sommerfeld, now 40, describes his 15-year-old self.

“Most people wouldn’t think it by looking at me now, but I was a real dork when I was in school,” John said. “I wore glasses, bifocals. I dressed the part. I was smart and made good grades. I was a nerd, and I got picked on a whole lot.”

John Sommerfeld

Then he met a guy who helped change his persona.

The glasses were the first to go.

“He said, ‘Wear these clothes, grab this skateboard and follow me.’ I was 15, and for the first time I had friends. I had a group of guys who were actually interested in hanging out with me,” John recalled.

“They were rebels. And soon, I became a rebel, too. It carried over into my home life. Fighting and rebelling.”

As friction built between John, his mom and stepdad, John began running away from home to his friend’s house.

“She would send the cops over there and I would come back home,” John said. “But then I’d go in my bedroom, lock the door, and head out the window and back over there.”

After his friend offered John the chance to live with his family, guardianship papers were signed. It was the start of a new chapter in John’s life.

ON THE ROAD
The story includes not finishing his senior year at Ross S. Sterling High School (he later got his GED), moving to Arkansas after his new family relocated there, and hitting the road to travel the country.

“I left home and went all over, including Arkansas, Missouri, Florida and New Mexico. The opportunity arose where I could do that, so I took advantage of it,” John said.

Over the next few years, John had his share of adventures.

He lived for about three months in Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri, as part of a Rainbow Gathering. What he described as a “hippie culture,” the gatherings are loosely knit communities of people who temporarily congregate in forests around the world to enact a shared ideology of peace, harmony, freedom and respect.

He hitched a ride from Missouri to Florida with a group of Native Americans who were originally headed to a religious revival in Mexico City. They drove more than 400 miles out of their way on their school bus converted into an RV to take John and his friend to Florida.

While living in Key West, John and his friend visited Christmas Tree Island, where they discovered a string that led into some woods. “We started following the string and came up on a huge, two-story teepee this guy had built out of pine trees. Inside it had carpet, a couch, TV, everything. It was amazing. We stayed with him for a couple weeks,” John said.

John with his 5-year-old son, Alex.

Along the way, John had several relationships. He got married twice and had three children, including a 17-year-old son and 15-year-old daughter who were taken by Child Protective Services. He hasn’t seen either since the boy was 7.

“She really didn’t want to have kids. She didn’t want to have the responsibility of a family. So I had the option to divorce her and take on fighting CPS on my own or signing over my rights to them. They just put it to us in court that it was the best thing for us to do, to go ahead and sign over our rights. They basically talked us into it,” John said.

“At that time, my life was not in a place where I could take care of two kids by myself, working full time and with no real family support. So they were taken by CPS and adopted out.”

About a year ago, John was contacted by CPS to ask if he wanted to write a letter to his son.

“I was overjoyed. So I wrote him a letter about four pages long, explaining everything that happened from the last moment I saw him until the writing of the letter,” John said. “But I don’t think he got it. I never heard anything back from CPS.”

John doesn’t know many details about his daughter’s life, but he is very close to his 5-year-old son, Alex.

“It’s amazing. I’ve had a lot of experiences in my life, and he’s the best one,” John said. “My other kids were great also. But this little boy here is my heart.”

LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE
John feels that he has turned his life around.

“I found Jesus. It changed the way I look at everything, the way I look at myself and at other people,” he said.

“I used to be really codependent on relationships. It’s why I stayed in a whole bunch of bad relationships when they should have been over. I felt like I wasn’t somebody unless I had somebody. Now that I’ve found Jesus, he fills that void in me.”

John didn’t come to that realization until his life was at its lowest point. He was in jail on a charge of driving with a suspended license and no insurance.

“While I was in jail, I got into a little bit of trouble. So they stripped me naked, gave me a blanket and put me in this rubber room,” John said.

“I was stripped of everything. I’m talking my family, my friends, my clothes, my self-respect. Everything. They put me in that room, and I walked out a completely different man. I don’t even know how long I was in there. Maybe 24 hours. It was just a turning point in my brain. I can’t explain it. It’s beyond my words how predominant the feeling was that came over me and the way it all just happened. It really was a miracle.

“Things are great now. My mom’s real spiritual. She’s a devoted Catholic, and she’s always wanted me to be on that path. Now that I’m on it, she’s just ecstatic about it.”

John's lowest point came while he was in jail.

Any advice for others who may be struggling to figure out their lives?

“It’s all about surrounding yourself with the right people. It’s so easy to get with people who can persuade you to do things that are not right. For me, it ended up going in a really bad direction. It took me to places in my life that I really didn’t want to be,” John said.

“But I learned that if you surround yourself with positive people, people who will uplift you without bringing you down, then it’s a really positive thing to do in your life. I’ve cut out a lot of people who were really negative. They still try to contact me today, and I just don’t want to have anything to do with them. They’re still out there getting messed up, doing the same things they did 15 years ago.

“People I hang around with now are about being kind, doing the right thing and treating your fellow man like you want to be treated. It makes me feel really good about myself that I’m associating with people who would rather shake your hand and hold the door for you than flip you off and be rude.”

David Isaac: His world is a mix of music and politics

David Isaac was president of the student body at Lee College.

In his younger days, David Isaac’s idea of fun was reading almanacs. If he wasn’t learning about the presidents and how political parties work, he was studying different countries and cultures.

There also was music. With his sisters, they would record over tapes to create their own radio shows. And on holidays, they did their best Temptations impersonation at family gatherings.

Today, David’s world is still filled with music and politics. He wouldn’t have it any other way.

Let’s take politics first.

At age 29, David is considering running for U.S. Senate. That might seem like a pipe dream for someone who has never held public office, but he doesn't mind playing the role of underdog.

“I’m exploring the possibility of running in the Texas Democratic primary to motivate youth and black voters,” he said. “I know it sounds kind of crazy. I’d probably be the youngest person, and the only black person, to put their name on the ballot.”

But David has never shied away from the political spotlight.

While attending Lee College, he won the race for student body president. Holding that position as a 21-year-old in 2009, he also ran for mayor of Baytown.

“I wanted to give a voice to people in the community who might be afraid to stand up and speak for themselves,” David said.

Then, in 2015, he was among the candidates for Lee College Board of Regents.

“Overall, I feel that people just want a seat at the table. If at least that much can be achieved, then I think a lot of us will feel better about the political system,” David said.

“There’s a movement taking place. I really think the structure of politics will change drastically in the next 10 to 15 years, and I want to be there.”

David, back stage with bands Hikes from Austin and Tricot from Kyoto, Japan.

Then there’s the music.

When he’s not visiting family and friends in Baytown, David is working as a “music impresario” in Japan.

As president of his company, Dead Foxx, he is a music promoter for bands from Japan and the United States.

David also manages bands and works as a music producer. On occasion, he even performs as a freestyle rapper.

After putting together shows in Baytown involving local bands, David became more serious about the music business when he created Dead Foxx in 2011. He expanded to shows in Houston and Austin, before making the leap to Japan.

Currently, he’s putting the finishing touches on plans for a summer tour in Japan for The Fall of Troy, a mathcore trio from Mukilteo, Washington. They will be joined by Hikes, an Austin-based band.

“This will be the first time for The Fall of Troy playing in Japan, and it’s definitely the biggest show of my life as a promoter,” David said.

“They are a very important band to me. Their music has meant so much to me for years. I feel extremely blessed that they are putting their faith in me as their guy in Japan.”

And why the interest in the Japanese music scene?

“Japan has a very rich culture, a very rich history. It has always appealed to me as a country,” David said.

“What many people don’t realize is that it's the second largest music market in the world. I knew there was potential there. I just wanted to see it for myself.”

David isn't shy about taking the stage to freestyle rap.

While he enjoys introducing U.S. bands to Japanese audiences, David also likes to bring Japanese acts to the states.

“Not only is it cool to expose people here to the Japanese culture, but they quickly learn that they also play really badass music,” said David, who has managed the Japanese band, The Otonana Trio, for several years.

When he’s in Japan, David calls Machida, Tokyo, home. And as a 6-foot-5 African-American, he tends to stand out.

“Because of my appearance, I get a level of attention there that I would never expect here in America,” said David, who has been interviewed a number of times on TV in Japan.

“I never experienced that before. In fact, being African-American in my hometown, in my classrooms or anywhere really, it sometimes felt like it was a detriment. Or there was something for me to be self-conscious about. But in Japan, it’s completely opposite.”

With his work visa in hand, David will return to Japan ahead of The Fall of Troy’s tour kickoff in June. While continuing to try to make a living promoting and managing bands, he also will seek additional employment.

As a freestyle rapper for about 15 years — he uses the stage name David Isick — he has his eye on a job in Kyoto teaching a hip-hop class.

“As someone from the Houston area, where rap culture is so strong, I’d be more than happy to teach them how to rap,” he said.

While he has a girlfriend in Japan and intends to continue working there for the foreseeable future, David doesn’t plan to ditch his Texas roots. He still considers Baytown his home base.

While his Texas roots run deep, David now spends most of his time living in Japan.

On the education front, David is working toward a bachelor’s degree in public service leadership development through University of Houston-Clear Lake.

“In the near future I would like to open up the Pumphrey Foundation and use it as a vessel to help foster talent, especially for those who are disadvantaged, and shape them into new leaders,” he said.

“Pumphrey Elementary closed down several years ago. It was a school I attended in first and second grade. Their thesis was largely about inclusion and diversity. Their message was: Together we can. That’s a message I’ve used in many of the political campaigns I’ve been involved in, and I want to bring that back.”

David has come a long way since moving with his family from Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, to the states when he was about 4 years old.

As he reflects on those early years when his nose was in almanacs, learning about the world and all of its possibilities, a mantra of the 1990s streams in his head: You can be anything you want to be.

“I recall hearing that all the time as a kid, and I still think of it as a privilege,” David said. “It’s still something I am pursuing. It’s still something I am trying to live up to.”

Saundra Smith: Coming to grips with her cancer experience

When her mother tried to register Saundra Smith for school in Port Arthur, Texas, she got a surprising response.

“They said they didn’t have a nursery school, and that she should bring me back next year for kindergarten,” Saundra said.

Old enough to be a first-grader, Saundra’s small stature caused the confusion.

Also very athletic as a child, “I did not have the problems that obese children have,” she said.

THE 'WEIGHT'ING GAME
It’s when Saundra quit being physically active that she began gaining weight.

Saundra Smith

Then, when Saundra was 25, her mother died of cancer. Depression followed.

“I started adding pounds, and I gradually gained more and more through the years,” she said.

While also dealing with high blood pressure and diabetes, Saundra became aware of how others perceived her.

“I worried about whether my family was embarrassed. The truth is that I was embarrassed for them to be seen with me,” she said.

Her son, daughter and husband were concerned about her health, but they remained supportive.

“My husband, Gary, never placed any sort of guilt trip on me,” Saundra said. “He was never critical. He never once said, ‘Do you really need to eat all of that?’ or ‘Maybe you should save some for later.’”

Saundra tried a stomach stapling procedure when she was 40. She expected it to be a magic cure. “But I didn't do my part,” and she continued to gain weight.

At 386 pounds, she finally decided to have a gastric bypass in 2005.

SURPRISE, YOU HAVE CANCER
“When I woke up, I learned that the doctor had found tumors on my stomach, liver and pancreas,” Saundra said. “But I didn’t give myself time to be depressed about the cancer. I was too irate about him not doing the bypass.”

After being released from the hospital and having a battery of tests, it was decided that Saundra would die sooner from being obese and associated medical issues than from her carcinoid cancer.

So they rescheduled the gastric bypass surgery, during which her tumors were seared.

Cancer runs in Saundra's family.

Once Saundra was back on solid food, her doctor began to control the cancer with a monthly injection.

“I started participating in Relay for Life, but felt odd doing so. I almost felt guilty saying I had cancer or that I was a survivor,” she said. “It was like I didn’t have the right to be there since I had no real symptoms of cancer the way others had. All I did was take a shot. I had no radiation. I had no weeks of regular chemo.

“So I just concentrated on being there for my mother and her five siblings who had died of various cancers, and for friends who died or were going through cancer treatment.”

In addition to losing her mother to breast cancer and five aunts and uncles to other forms of cancer, Saundra learned that several members of her grandmother’s family also lost cancer battles.

Still, beyond receiving her monthly shot, the carcinoid cancer didn’t seem to have much of an impact on Saundra’s daily life.

But things changed in 2016. She was up to two injections a month, and then was switched to an oral chemo drug. That’s when drug interaction problems and side effects hit her hard.

“I began to realize that I didn’t have an annoyance. I had cancer. It finally started becoming real,” Saundra said.

She began having physical problems and was dealing with the depression that many cancer patients experience.

While researching carcinoid cancer, Saundra learned about the zebra stripe ribbon that brings awareness to the disease. She was quick to order T-shirts featuring a zebra.

Her house is now full of zebra-themed items, including stuffed animals, pillows and quilts given to her by family and friends.

In the process Saundra has become more vocal about carcinoid cancer, and she is happy to educate others about the disease.

Saundra and her husband, Gary

THE SHOW MUST GO ON
While she deals with mobility and stamina issues, Saundra stays busy with a number of activities. Topping the list is Baytown Little Theater, where she and Gary have been members since 1968.

“Gary is the lights guy and I’m the props mistress,” she said. “I also have directed both youth and adult shows.”

She will hold auditions for the theater’s latest play, “The Lion in Winter,” on April 2-3.

Saundra recently learned from a specialist in Houston that her tumors are significantly reduced.

“I’m coming to grips with the fact that my cancer will never go away. It travels the blood system and the lymph system, and we will continue to deal with the outcrops of tumors. But I’ll take that,” she said.

“Back in 2005 when we started all of this, I was told by one of my doctors that because of my obesity, the cancer and my other health problems, they didn’t really expect me to still be living today. They tell me that I’m a tough old bird. I gladly relate to that.”

Jenny Willis-Davis: An advocate for young athletes' health

Jenny Willis-Davis was working in downtown Houston last October when her husband contacted her.

Jenny Willis-Davis

“He got a phone call from school. They told him, ‘You need to come get your son immediately or we’re calling the ambulance,’” she said.

Not something that any parents want to hear about their 13-year-old.

“My husband was coming from Channelview, and I’m driving from downtown feeling like it’s taking forever to get there,” Jenny said.

Jalen had been sitting in class at Highlands Junior School when he realized that his heart was beating out of his chest.

“Being teenage boys, he and his friends started laughing,” Jenny said.

The teacher sent Jalen to the office, where his heart rate was clocked at an alarming 241 beats per minute.

“After we got there, we rushed him to the emergency center,” Jenny said. “They hooked him up, ran all the tests, and the EKG came back showing he had Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.”

WPW is a condition in which there is an extra electrical pathway between the heart's upper and lower chambers. As long as the heart is pumping and it bypasses that pathway, you’re fine. But if it hits that circuit, it can lead to periods of rapid heart rate.

Their doctor presented the Davis family with several treatment options. Told that there was a 95 percent chance of fixing the problem with a catheter ablation procedure, “that was a no-brainer.”

However, Jalen was terrified.

An EKG showed that Jalen Davis had
Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

“He was like, ‘Why would you do this to me?’ At the time, he didn’t understand the seriousness of it,” Jenny said.

The six-hour procedure, performed two months later during the holiday break from school, was a success.

“The doctor finally came out and told us that Jalen definitely had Wolff-Parkinson-White, and he was able to fix it. We all started tearing up at the good news,” Jenny said.

“But then he said that Jalen was having way more activity than we probably realized. With a condition like his, and his activity level playing lots of sports, it put him in a high range for sudden death if we hadn't fixed things.”

After some initial caution, Jalen was back to playing basketball for Highlands Junior in two weeks. “And now as he’s running track, you’d never have known that he had a heart condition,” Jenny said.

Since the surgery, she has become something of an expert on Wolff-Parkinson-White. Through her research, she realized that there’s a huge lack of awareness about the health issue.

“What parents need to understand is that this can happen to your kid. Don’t be so blind. If your child is telling you his heart is racing, listen to him. And get it checked. If they find it, it can be fixed,” Jenny said.

Brothers Jace (left) and Jalen Davis

“Fortunately, it wasn’t a tragic ending for us. I don’t want it to be for anyone else, either.”

Jenny has shared her knowledge about WPW with family, friends and local coaches. She helped push for a school district-wide physical day in May with heart screenings for student-athletes in grades 7-12.

Taking such an active role where youth are concerned is nothing new for Jenny and her husband, Willis (yes, his first name is Willis and her maiden name is Willis). They have been heavily involved in local athletics since their two sons started playing T-ball at age 5.

Jalen, now 14, has followed in the footsteps of Jace, 15. They both play multiple sports, Jalen (5-foot-9 1/2, 138 pounds) at Highlands Junior and Jace (6-1, 238) at Goose Creek Memorial High School.

When the boys played baseball in the North Little League, you could often find Willis coaching and Jenny serving as team mom. Eventually, Jenny joined the league’s board.

Now she is president of Baytown Little League and Willis serves on that board. Opening day for the 2017 season is scheduled for March 25.

Jenny with her husband, Willis

“With the support of our board and the city, we’ve been able to make some positive changes,” said Jenny, mentioning aesthetic updates and safety enhancements at the three local ballparks.

All of this preparation has gone on while Jenny and Willis have followed their sons’ sports exploits.

But they are happy to keep busy — Jenny also is president of the Goose Creek Memorial football booster club — and to have their family health concerns behind them.

Prior to Jalen’s scare, Willis beat thyroid cancer and Jenny had knee surgery to repair an old sports injury.

“We definitely have battled these past few years,” Jenny said. “But I keep thinking there must be a better plan for us. After what we’ve been through, it’s obviously not our time yet.”

Derek Coy: Helping to improve the health of veterans

Sometimes, one incident can change your path in life.

For Derek Coy, it was the death of a close friend to gun violence in 2004.

“He was everybody's best friend. It was one of the hardest things I have been through, mostly because it was so unexpected,” said Derek, a 2003 graduate of Robert E. Lee High School in Baytown. “I never knew the details, other than reading it was a case of mistaken identity.”

Shaken by the shooting, Derek felt like running away.

“And the Marine Corps was happy to have me,” he said.

Less than a month after the funeral, Derek was being sworn in. Within a year, he was stationed in Iraq.

“It changed my life profoundly,” Derek said. “But through this terrible loss, my life gained meaning, purpose and direction.”

A third-generation Marine, following in his father’s footsteps, Derek rose to the rank of sergeant. He served a year-long deployment to Iraq’s Anbar Province and another aboard the U.S.S. Essex in a humanitarian and training capacity with countries across Southeast Asia.

Derek completed his service in 2008. But the experience proved hard to shake.

“Looking back on my time in Iraq, I feel very guilty knowing that I contributed to the devastation and destruction in that country over the past 14 years. It hasn't sat well with me,” he said.

“I thought my contribution to that war would have helped an oppressed people. But I think the country is in far worse shape than it was before we entered.”

Derek fought additional personal battles after his time in Iraq, mostly post-traumatic stress and depression.

He said that one of the hardest things, especially for veterans, is asking for help.

“It's stigmatized and viewed as being weak, which is incredibly wrong. It's shockingly normal. One in four Americans will experience some sort of mental illness, post-traumatic stress being one of them,” Derek said.

“Dealing with it is just a matter of whether you have a community around you with the proper resources. Thankfully, I had that when I needed it. It was up to me to reach out.”

Despite enjoying teaching and originally planning to pursue that as a career, Derek was introduced to the veteran nonprofit world through some volunteer work while attending graduate school at City College of New York. It opened his eyes to the unmet needs of returning veterans, and it sparked his desire to serve that community.

Derek is making a difference now as veterans’ health officer for the New York State Health Foundation.

“My role is pretty incredible. I get to invest in organizations that are dedicated to improving the health of veterans across New York,” he said. “I’m helping expand some of the services that were vital to my transition out of the service, so it is one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life.”

Derek finds time to volunteer with Puppies Behind Bars. The organization trains prison inmates to raise service dogs for wounded war veterans and explosive detection canines for law enforcement.

He also is a competitive runner, and participated in the United Airlines NYC Half-Marathon on March 19. The event benefited Tuesday's Children, formed in the aftermath of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, as a response and recovery organization that supports youth, families and communities impacted by terrorism and traumatic loss.

Derek was never a running enthusiast. But after his time in Iraq, it became a way for him to temporarily escape his problems related to PTSD and depression.

“Before long, I was running nearly 50 miles a week. I have since run four full marathons and quite a few smaller races,” said Derek, who raised more than $1,500 in finishing the NYC Half-Marathon in a little over two hours.

“I love to travel and explore new places, so running became a way for me to get acclimated to new environments. It really is the best way to get to know a new place, which is one of the ways I got adjusted to living in New York City.”

Giving back to Tuesday’s Children has not only allowed Derek to support the organization’s mission, “but also help in my healing process by continuing to serve others — something instilled in me as a young Marine.”

Amanda Vela: Striving to learn and grow with her children

Amanda and Andres Vela with their children.

It’s not always easy. But as the mom in a family of six, Amanda Vela tries her best to spread the love around.

“One of my biggest challenges is time,” she said. “With multiple children at different ages, it’s hard to find the time for one-on-one with each. It’s also difficult to do activities that everyone is interested in or that all can participate in.”

When Amanda was 23 years old, the story was a bit different. Besides her young son, Logan, the focus of her attention was a new baby facing an uphill battle.

Bethany was born full term. She weighed 10 pounds, 2 ounces, and was the largest baby in the neonatal intensive care unit.

“Doctors noticed right away that she did not have the ability to suck a bottle or swallow,” Amanda said. “Before we could take her home, she ended up having surgery for a feeding tube.”

Born with cerebral palsy, Bethany was given little hope of leading a normal life.

Based on what the doctors told her, Amanda believed her daughter “would most likely be a vegetable, for lack of a better word.”

Bethany was born with cerebral palsy.

To add to a young mom’s challenges, Amanda and Bethany’s father separated. Eventually, Amanda felt it necessary to legally end his relationship with Bethany.

“So here I was, 24 years old, with two kids under the age of 5, one with severe disabilities,” Amanda said.

Fortunately, when Bethany began receiving therapy services at 3 months old, she showed progress right away.

It was a long and slow process. But with the therapist’s guidance, follow through at home and Bethany’s determination, she eventually was able to eat enough food by mouth to have the feeding tube permanently removed. She was able to sit by herself by 3 years old.

“Once she started going to the clinic for therapy, she really started taking off,” Amanda said. “She learned basic sign language to communicate until her speed improved, and she learned to independently dress and groom herself.”

Bethany, now 14, has been released from therapy services for five years. And she continues to flourish.

Anything physically demanding causes Bethany to tire a lot faster than a typical child. She uses forearm crutches to assist in walking every day. She occasionally uses a wheelchair, mostly on vacations or trips to the zoo when lots of walking is required.

A teacher recommended placing Bethany in Special Olympics through the school district to help her get exercise, and also to meet new people and make friends.

“She loves it. She participates in bocce, baseball and bowling in the fall, as well as basketball, soccer and cycling in the spring,” Amanda said.

Bethany also competes in Unified Showmanship, where she shows a goat or lamb. In addition, she is in student council at school.

“Like many other special needs parents, I tended to overcompensate in the beginning. I just wasn’t sure how to navigate this unfamiliar path our lives had taken,” Amanda said.

“But as the years went by and I saw the interaction between Bethany and her siblings, I noticed that she just wanted to be treated the same as them. She sees herself as the same as them, and we do, too.”

Amanda and her daughter, Bethany.

Amanda and her husband of nine years, Andres, have two sons and two daughters: Andres (24), Logan (18), Bethany and Mia (4).

When they saw that Bethany was old enough and capable of completing chores, she started doing her fair share.

“All the expectations of the kids are the same, and she lives up to them every day,” Amanda said.

“She is smart, kind, funny and beautiful inside and out. I couldn’t be prouder to be her mother. I’m amazed by the things she accomplishes and the way she continually inspires everyone around her. She inspires me. She is my hero.”

Through the years, Amanda feels she has matured as a parent. Despite challenges along the way, she has embraced the experience.

“The best part of being a parent is learning and growing with your children, and watching their little personalities blossom. You get to share every accomplishment, every milestone, every bump along the way. You get to be a part of someone’s story from the very beginning. You get to see the very best parts of yourself in them,” Amanda said.

“For me, a high point of parenting is when I see the qualities of good character, compassion and acceptance come from my children’s actions. It makes me proud to know that some of what I’ve been trying to instill in them is sticking.”