Diving Program Helps Wounded Soldiers with Rehab

Rincón, Puerto Rico — The first time former U.S. Army National Guard veteran John W. Thompson walked into Walter Reed, he knew he had to do something.

"I've never been to a military hospital and one day I went to have lunch with my wife at Walter Reed and as soon as you walk in, you see some pretty heavy stuff and I really wasn't prepared for that and it hit me hard. I knew right at that moment that I had to get involved but I really didn't know what attributes I had to offer these guys."

Thompson, who served in the Army National Guard from 1985 to 1992, said he "needed some direction and discipline." After losing his father at age 13, he enlisted and the military gave him the structure he needed. He was never deployed — and seeing the wounded men and women at Walter Reed was a gut check.

"I was lucky and they weren't so lucky," he said.

After his visit to the medical center, Thompson went to the American Red Cross office at the hospital and asked to volunteer. He was placed in the aquatics department. That's when the idea took shape.

"Eventually I was — you know what, here's a pool and all these injured men and women and I'm a certified diving instructor — so why don't we use scuba diving to help with the rehab process."

After that visit, it became Thompson's life passion. He launched SUDS — Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba in 2007, based at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The organization focuses on improving the lives of injured servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan using scuba diving and other adaptive sports to help facilitate rehabilitation.

"A lot of them are still going through treatment — a lot of people don't know this but some of them have had 75 or 80 surgeries. To see the joy and excitement when we come up from the dive is amazing. They are away from all that stuff at home and here they can relax and have an enjoyable time."

During the winter, Thompson brings a veteran each week to dive in the warm waters of Rincón, Puerto Rico — a surf town off the west coast of the island. Taino Divers, a local scuba shop, takes Thompson and the wounded soldiers to the small island of Desecheo.

"It is a great place and I have been coming here for the past 12 years. It's a small town with about 15,000 people but most of the residents — if they see an injured person or amputee — they know that they are part of the SUDS program. They just roll out the red carpet and treat them like family," Thompson said.

Staff Sergeant Juan Andres Arredondo

One of the veterans participating in the program is former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Juan Andres Arredondo. Arredondo, 34, joined the U.S. Army in 1998 to provide for his family, growing up in the Coachella Valley, California.

"The friendships you form with the other service members that want to serve this country was the best part about being in service. There's nothing like it."

Arredondo was assigned to 1/506 D Company, 2nd Infantry Division based in South Korea and deployed to Iraq in 2004. On February 28, 2005, his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb.

"My platoon sergeant was with me in the truck and he looked over and he said, 'Arredondo, IED on the left side.' I knew what that meant in the kill zone so I just put my head down and my foot on the gas and that's when the device went off."

Arredondo's left arm was severed immediately. He sustained multiple injuries to both calves, his right thigh, right arm, and his left hand was severed at the wrist. His recovery was long and difficult.

"When you're lying in the bed all you're thinking about is how you are going to take care of your family," he recalled. "My recovery was tough. I was able to do things but it was my mind what was holding me back — telling me I can't do that."

The Healing Power of the Underwater World

"It is very important to have recreational therapy and sports like scuba diving because it gets you in the mindset that you can still operate and do what you want to do."

The first time Arredondo went out scuba diving was also his very first time on a boat. "I was very proud to do my first dive with John and on my first dive I got to see a whale shark," he said. After that, he started diving more frequently.

"There's not a lot of weight down there. The weightlessness, the quietness, and the breathing of your regulator and oxygen tank is just very calming. It is an amazing feeling. It feels like I'm leaving all my troubles above the surface."

SUDS runs about 12 scuba diving trips a year to destinations including Hawaii, Curaçao, Puerto Rico, Guantanamo Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico.

"These guys end up being my closest friends. It is very inspiring to see Juan with his injuries and others and see them overcome their injuries and not letting that define them. Juan has a lot of heart and spirit."