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Mission: Home Slideshow


View additional photos from the "next battles" veterans Cameron Kerr '09 and Nathan Toews '12 faced after coming home from war.
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  • Toews works on a Humvee engine in Camp Victory in Baghdad, Iraq, during his first deployment.
    In Iraq
  • Toews in Afghanistan in 2006, his second deployment in two years.
    In Afghanistan
  • This "before and after" image shows the effect of the craniotomy, which removed half of Toews' skull after he was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan. The image on the right shows Toews after doctors were able to replace that half with prosthetic bone. "Part of the reason they took so much of my skull out was to allow room for brain swelling, so as to prevent further injury," Toews explains. "I lived like that for about eight months, had migraines basically everyday."
    Before and After
  • Toews takes some of his first steps at the National Naval Medical Center two months after being injured by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan in 2006.
    Recovery
  • Toews (center) takes a break from helping to repair flood damage in Nashville, Tenn., and poses with other students on the January 2011 Serve the World trip.
    Serve the World
  • Toews installs insulation in a home damaged by Hurricane Katrina during a 2009 Serve the World trip to New Orleans.
    New Orleans
  • Kerr (right) poses with his platoon sergeant, Derek Leach, in Afghanistan. Six days after this photo was taken, Leach carried Kerr to the MEDEVAC helicopters after Kerr stepped on an IED and exhausted himself hopping on his uninjured leg. “He did this at significant risk to himself,” Kerr says, “and when I requested he be considered for a retroactive medal for valor, the reply was something along the lines of ‘this valorous conduct is expected of soldiers and nothing out of the ordinary.’ ”
    In Afghanistan
  • Kerr takes his first steps on his prosthetic leg, March 31, 2011, at Walter Reed.
    First Steps
  • Kerr poses with Dr. Christiaan Mamczak, the surgeon who amputated his leg months earlier. "He had recently returned from Afghanistan and was visiting Walter Reed during his block leave," Kerr explains. "He was the primary trauma surgeon in Kandahar during much of the deployment, so it's likely that he operated on most of the guys from my unit as well as many other patients at Walter Reed."
    Kerr's Surgeon
  • Kerr poses with Robert Swan, a British polar explorer, environmentalist and the founder of 2041, before the Marine Corps Marathon. Swan ran the marathon to raise money for Kerr and another wounded veteran and to participate in 2041's 2012 expedition to Antarctica. Kerr ran the 10K that same morning.
    Robert Swan
  • Kerr poses with his mother and father after the NYC Marathon. "I handcycled the first 16 miles and ran the last 10.2," notes Kerr.
    NYC Marathon
  • Kerr ascending the Martial Glacier north of Ushuaia with his hiking team, as practice for their upcoming glacial hikes in Antarctica. "We roped together as a safeguard against falling, as the grades did get steeper and snowier the higher we went up the glacier," he explains. "I soon found that prosthetics don't offer the best traction in snow."
    Training Hike
  • Kerr poses with polar explorer and environmentalist Rob Swan, and Matt Bonchi, another wounded veteran, in front of the ship that began their journey to Antarctica. "My 101st Airborne flag is something our 101st liaison gave each of us coming in to Walter Reed from serving with the division in Afghanistan, as well as a silver sharpie," says Kerr. "The intent is for all visitors, family, and friends to sign the flag next to your hospital bed, as a memento and gift from the unit. Now my flag has turned into my personal 'Flat Stanley,' and features prominently in photos from my various excursions."
    Sea Spirit
  • Kerr and other members of the 2041 Antarctica expedition charge across the Antarctic waters to get a closer look at humpback whales that were breaching several hundred meters away.
    Chasing Whales
  • Kerr and other members of the expedition team rest for a moment at the top of a hike in Paradise Bay, Antarctica. "This is probably my favorite photo from Antarctica because it illustrates the absolute massive scale of the place, with a glacier rising to epic proportions in the background of the photo," says Kerr.
    Paradise Bay
  • Kerr takes the "polar plunge" off the side of the ship. The challenge is to dunk your face for as long as you can in sub-freezing ocean water . "Only managed four seconds before I had to pull myself out," says Kerr.
Toews works on a Humvee engine in Camp Victory in Baghdad, Iraq, during his first deployment.Prev ImageNext Image

 


Learn more how Toews and Kerr faced their homecomings in "Mission: Home."