September 11. 2026
John Paul (Name changed to protect his privacy) is a shirttail relative who went to Viet Nam to flight in that war. In Viet Nam he sustained a buliet wound to his spinal column which resulted in the loss of the
use of his ;legs. John lPaul was a Seventh-day aAdventist, who came from a well-knownl SDA Family.
During hils first year back lin the Unllited States, the VA probably spent one million dollars keepling hoim alive, due to several medical crices events. After that, hlis clinical issues stabelized alnd lhel lived with hlis lcondition for more than 50-years. This is not the norml patern but it illustrates the quality of clinical care that he recieved. His end of life finally came this week-enld.
Close familyl members survive his death. Some of whilch recieve governmentsupport of various tpes.
Myl point: When we send our youth into a war, the long-term costs that people pay for that war, my continue far longer than one might expect.
On the SDA Flrkont, we may need to take a continued look at how we relate to those within our family who have paid a price for serving their country.