Mission & Purpose (NQM009)
“People may look at me and say, "Poor guy," but the truth is I’m happier now than I’ve ever been. I’m full of hope and understanding of others. Before I was injured my life was about me, and now I get to make my life simply about others. So don’t feel sorry for me. Don’t feel sad or apologize for what happened to me. This experience made me stronger. If there’s one thing to take away, it’s this: The American service member’s spirit cannot and will not be broken. You can throw dirt on us, beat us, or batter us, but you will not break us.”
Staff Sergeant First Class Michael Schlitz is a warrior in every sense of the word. After his patrol vehicle hit an IED on 27 Feb ‘07 in Iraq, he lost three of his platoon mates. Being ejected from the vehicle, he was the only survivor. Cpl. Lorne Henry Jr, Sgt. Richard Soukenka, Sgt Jonathan Cadavero all perished in the IED strike. SFC Schlitz was had burns covering 85% of his body, lost both hands and vision in his left eye, and has endured over 90 surgeries on his road to recovery. This is a man that will give you perspective, and teach you the values of never quitting.
Today he has dedicated his life to helping others. “On the day I got hurt, I lost my entire crew. Now, I want to live a better life for them, a life they would be proud of.” He serves full time as a Gary Sinise Foundation ambassador and its Military & Veteran Resource Manager. This incredible foundation creates and supports unique programs designed to entertain, educate, inspire, strengthen, and build communities focusing on the integration of US military veterans and their families. You can find out here how to help their mission.
SFC Schlitz has given numerous detailed and insightful interviews, and he often talks about the importance of having a mission & a purpose. From the Hope Unseen interview:
“Having a sense of purpose and a mission is also key. Both are very important and different in meaning. “Sense of purpose” is what gets you out of bed. For some, it’s family, career, or traveling. These are just a few, but what’s important is that you have something in life that excites you to get out of bed. Then you insert your mission. Your mission is to work towards accomplishing your sense of purpose. Let’s use family as the example. If your family is your sense of purpose, then your mission might be to work hard to provide for their basic living needs. But it can’t stop there. You also must make time for them emotionally. To show them the love and care they need. Like any mission in the military, you must have a plan and contingency plans for those unexpected turns in life. When a Veteran doesn’t have a sense of purpose, a mission, and can’t find their identity then they are going to face more struggles until they do.”
As usual, the Team Never Quit guys did an excellent podcast with SFC Michael Schlitz. I usually post excerpts but the whole interview is pretty much worthy of an excerpt. Give it a listen below and I am sure you will come out at the other end having learned some valuable perspective and a new appreciation for life.
