Veterans Recognize Hero in our Midst( Purple Heart Recipient Honored by Nat...),Health

Purple Heart Recipient Honored by National Coalition for Homeless Veterans

WASHINGTON, May 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. Army Captain Scott Quilty (Ret.) received the Unsung Hero Award at the 2009 Conference of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV).

Quilty, 29, served in Iraq with the 10th Mountain Division. In 2006, while leading a patrol in the Sunni Triangle, Quilty sustained devastating injuries from an IED explosion that cost him his right arm and right leg.

During 18 months of recovery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Capt. Quilty made a commitment to Survivor Corps, an organization that helps survivors of war heal and transform their communities. Quilty's Survivor Corps initiative, the Campaign for Healthy Homecoming, ensures that soldiers and their families have the tools they need in life after service.

"I lost my arm and my leg in Iraq, but I gained a sense of self," Quilty says. "The toughest part for me was answering some of those existential questions, 'How am I going to go on from here, and how will I take care of my family?' Now I am working to rise above my circumstance and give back to others."

Over the last six years the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans has successfully reduced veteran homelessness by 50%, but the number of homeless vets is still a staggering 154,000, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. This year, the NCHV has joined the Survivor Corps Healthy Homecoming campaign.

"Homecoming is a process, not a parade," Quilty says. "From my own personal experience and from seeing what my friends are going through, it's time now to begin the conversation on the issue of homeless veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan with the concept of prevention, not triage and treatment."