"I do have bad days, but for the most part, I live my life because life is worth living, and I had to carry that through my entire recovery." (Video interview, 1:15:05)

Shilo A. Harris

Shilo Harris in uniform, San Antonio, TX [n.d.] War: Iraq War, 2003-2011 Branch: Army Unit: B Troop, 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division; B Troop, 1st Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division Service Location: Schweinfurt, Germany; Iraq; Fort Drum, New York; Fort Knox, Kentucky; Brooke Army Medical Center, Texas Rank: Staff Sergeant

As a kid growing up in West Texas, Shilo Harris idolized his father and grandfather, both veterans, and soaked up the stories of their military experiences. Despite this family legacy of service, he didn’t enlist until he was 27 years old, after the crystallizing moment of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Although he came relatively late to the military life, he loved every minute of his time as a Cavalry Scout in the Army, from basic training through his deployments to Germany and Iraq. In February 2007, while serving with the 10th Mountain Division near southern Baghdad, his Humvee was struck by an improvised explosive device (IED), which killed three of his comrades and left him near death, with severe burns to over thirty percent of his body. He describes his subsequent recovery as an emotional and physical “roller coaster” that took three years and countless surgeries.