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[Image description: An old photograph of a man in short denim shorts and a long-sleeved t-shirt poses on a building ledge next to an Army insignia of an artillery regiment.]
Jean Plank’s initial introduction to Colorado Springs was a four-and-a-half-year stint at Fort Carson during his 20 years of service in the Army. Jean, who is originally from Seattle, and his wife, Kim, moved around a bit after his retirement from the military, but decided to settle down in the Springs after their granddaughter was born.
While serving, Jean sustained a neck injury that precipitated after he left the service. The injury progressed to the point where surgical intervention was necessary, leading to Jean —who had his first of eight surgeries seven years ago — facing challenges in his everyday life.
“I’m fortunate to be walking, obviously, but it was escalated up through the eight surgeries,” Jean said. “Just daily tasks of getting around the house, preparing food, getting to appointments, those types of things where I needed more and more assistance as we progressed along the surgery line.”
Jean first heard of The Independence Center’s Veteran Directed Care (VDC) program in occupational therapy and has been with the program for around three years.
“[It] got to the point where I needed additional care at home with daily living assistance and that’s where we met up with the VDC program and The Independence Center,” he said. “Sarah [Goldblum] and everyone I have been involved with at The Independence Center has been very helpful in guiding us down that path and providing us with resources and tools to get things done.”
The VDC program helped assist Jean with the tasks that he struggles with as well as opening the door to new resources and support options that he didn’t know were available to him.
“Since we’ve been in the VDC program, we’ve learned more and more and got more of these resources,” he said. “It’s because of the VDC that I’ve been able to function more and not be isolated to my house and stuck in one place. Before we had this, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to have that same quality of life, as far as being independent, and able to be out and do things that I wanted to do to sustain the quality of life that I liked. Knowing now that I have somebody who can help take care of me, to have the support to get things done, gives me that little bit of extra latitude to help.”
In a little over a month, Jean will be traveling to Indiana to see his daughter receive her master’s degree from Ball State University. He said a trip like that would be more difficult without the support he has through the VDC program.
“Travel is a little harder when I have to be stationary for long periods of time, especially if I had to drive,” he said. “Flying is a little easier, but, yes, travel is definitely more challenging. Having a companion to travel with makes it easier.”
When he looks back on his time serving, he remembers the camaraderie and friendships he developed with the different people he served with. Since his retirement, Jean regularly stays in touch with those he met in the Army.
“It’s the camaraderie, the places you’ve been, the people that you meet,” he said. “Then when you do get together, it’s the stories that you can remember and talk about.”
After meeting while serving, Jean still travels every year with one of his closest friends, visiting Major League Baseball stadiums until they have been to each one.
“Our goal when we get done with all the ballparks is to go to the Baseball Hall of Fame and that’ll be the culmination of the tour is to do the hall of fame,” he said.
If you or a loved one is a Veteran and would like to speak with someone from our VDC program, call us at 719-471-8181 or send an email to info@the-ic.org.
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