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A soldier’s story
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Loudoun County News
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Date: August 04, 2011 10:33AM
A soldier’s story
Friday, Jul. 29 by Alex Withrow
http://www.loudountimes.com/index.php/news/article/a_soldiers_story357/
On the evening of July 22, a crowd of hundreds gathered in the auditorium of Loudoun Valley High School, all in support of Marine Corps Corporal Rob Jones, a 2003 Valley graduate, who one year ago to the day lost both of his legs when he was struck by an improvised explosive device while sweeping for explosions in Afghanistan.
Premiering that evening was the documentary film “Survive. Recover. Live.” made by Jones’ close friend, and fellow Valley graduate, Ivan Kander. The film chronicles Jones’ recovery process since being injured, which includes footage of him competing in a triathlon and “Doing the Dew” with President Barack Obama.
But minutes before the movie began, the crowd witnessed something as inspirational as anything found in the film.
As Jones made his way down the long, ramped isle from the entrance of the auditorium to the stage, the crowd, which up until that point was engaged in a loud chatter of excitement, slowly became silent. As Jones reached the middle of the auditorium, each step more concentrated than the one before, the crowd erupted into a thunderous applause, before standing for an extended ovation.
Upon hearing of Jones’ injuries, Kander visited him at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Knowing that his friend was a budding filmmaker, Jones asked Kander if he would be interested in documenting his story, shedding light on a part of the recovery process that many people overlook.
“I thought it would be interesting to document, and that it could be useful to other people going through the same thing,” Jones said. “Most people just see you beforehand and when you’re done, but they don’t see the full recovery process.”
Kander’s filming resulted in roughly 20 hours of raw footage, which were edited down to a 30-minute short film.
“I was less interested in the initial recovery process and more interested in what happens after,” Kander said. “When stuff like this happens to people, there seems to be an emphasis on detailing the immediacy of what happened. But the healing and recovery process goes far beyond the initial two months of intensive surgery. So I found the rehabilitation very interesting. The part that asks what his life is going to be like now.”
When he wasn’t working full time as a videographer and motion graphics artist for Booz Allen Hamilton, Kander followed Jones around to document his friend’s recovery, and tackle the new goals Jones had set for himself.
“We filmed everything from him walking on prosthetics for the first time – a progression in and of itself that was very compelling, to his completion of a triathlon, which was just incredible,” Kander said.
In addition to achieving new goals, Jones was privy to a few encounters while staying at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, including Gary Sinise, who famously played a paraplegic in “Forrest Gump,” and the current president.
“They locked down the ward, and we all waited and then he came in,” Jones said about meeting President Obama. “He asked me a couple of questions, we talked for a little bit, and someone took a picture of us clinking Mountain Dews together. And then he had to move on to the next person. It was very cool.”
But for Kander, some of the most insightful footage he filmed was interviews with people who knew a different side to the friend he grew up with.
“I’ve known Rob for a number of years,” Kander said. “But in interviewing people he was with overseas, I got a whole new perspective of a person I thought I knew very well. Which isn’t to say I didn’t know him, I was just learning more about him.
“It seems to me that a person in Rob’s situation has two options: you don’t do anything, or you move forward. And that’s what Rob has done, kept moving forward. He’s such an optimistic person, and that hasn’t changed. I don’t think his injury has propelled his optimism; it was always there.”
Leslie Bower, who acts as an adviser to Loudoun Valley’s Veterans Club, agrees with Kander’s sentiments.
“There is just no stopping Rob,” Bower said. “Every goal he sets for himself, he seems to accomplish. The fact that he [chose] to spend the one year anniversary of his injury with us, that just shows who he is and the kind of people in the military he represents.”
Kander says that while filming may be on hold for now, he’d love to keep documenting Jones, who recently began an internship with the FBI.
“There’s no saying that what happens in the future won’t be even more compelling than what we’ve seen,” Kander said. “It’s interesting, I think heroism comes out when people are put in situations that they never thought they’d be put in. I don’t think Rob would define himself as a hero, but looking how he has handled this situation, it’s hard not to use the word heroic.”
To watch “Survive. Recover. Live.” go to http://www.vimeo.com and search “Survive. Recover. Live. (The Rob Jones Story).”
Purple heart recipient Rob Jones takes questions from the audience at Loudoun Valley High School July 22 after the screening of a short documentary about his recovery from an Improvised Explosive Device blast in Afghanistan that claimed both his legs. Colleagues and others interviewed for the film praised Jones for his optimism, drive and sense of humor even before the injury that persisted throughout his recovery and made him an inspiration. -Times-Mirror Staff Photo/Beverly Denny
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Friday, Jul. 29 by Alex Withrow
http://www.loudountimes.com/index.php/news/article/a_soldiers_story357/
On the evening of July 22, a crowd of hundreds gathered in the auditorium of Loudoun Valley High School, all in support of Marine Corps Corporal Rob Jones, a 2003 Valley graduate, who one year ago to the day lost both of his legs when he was struck by an improvised explosive device while sweeping for explosions in Afghanistan.
Premiering that evening was the documentary film “Survive. Recover. Live.” made by Jones’ close friend, and fellow Valley graduate, Ivan Kander. The film chronicles Jones’ recovery process since being injured, which includes footage of him competing in a triathlon and “Doing the Dew” with President Barack Obama.
But minutes before the movie began, the crowd witnessed something as inspirational as anything found in the film.
As Jones made his way down the long, ramped isle from the entrance of the auditorium to the stage, the crowd, which up until that point was engaged in a loud chatter of excitement, slowly became silent. As Jones reached the middle of the auditorium, each step more concentrated than the one before, the crowd erupted into a thunderous applause, before standing for an extended ovation.
Upon hearing of Jones’ injuries, Kander visited him at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Knowing that his friend was a budding filmmaker, Jones asked Kander if he would be interested in documenting his story, shedding light on a part of the recovery process that many people overlook.
“I thought it would be interesting to document, and that it could be useful to other people going through the same thing,” Jones said. “Most people just see you beforehand and when you’re done, but they don’t see the full recovery process.”
Kander’s filming resulted in roughly 20 hours of raw footage, which were edited down to a 30-minute short film.
“I was less interested in the initial recovery process and more interested in what happens after,” Kander said. “When stuff like this happens to people, there seems to be an emphasis on detailing the immediacy of what happened. But the healing and recovery process goes far beyond the initial two months of intensive surgery. So I found the rehabilitation very interesting. The part that asks what his life is going to be like now.”
When he wasn’t working full time as a videographer and motion graphics artist for Booz Allen Hamilton, Kander followed Jones around to document his friend’s recovery, and tackle the new goals Jones had set for himself.
“We filmed everything from him walking on prosthetics for the first time – a progression in and of itself that was very compelling, to his completion of a triathlon, which was just incredible,” Kander said.
In addition to achieving new goals, Jones was privy to a few encounters while staying at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, including Gary Sinise, who famously played a paraplegic in “Forrest Gump,” and the current president.
“They locked down the ward, and we all waited and then he came in,” Jones said about meeting President Obama. “He asked me a couple of questions, we talked for a little bit, and someone took a picture of us clinking Mountain Dews together. And then he had to move on to the next person. It was very cool.”
But for Kander, some of the most insightful footage he filmed was interviews with people who knew a different side to the friend he grew up with.
“I’ve known Rob for a number of years,” Kander said. “But in interviewing people he was with overseas, I got a whole new perspective of a person I thought I knew very well. Which isn’t to say I didn’t know him, I was just learning more about him.
“It seems to me that a person in Rob’s situation has two options: you don’t do anything, or you move forward. And that’s what Rob has done, kept moving forward. He’s such an optimistic person, and that hasn’t changed. I don’t think his injury has propelled his optimism; it was always there.”
Leslie Bower, who acts as an adviser to Loudoun Valley’s Veterans Club, agrees with Kander’s sentiments.
“There is just no stopping Rob,” Bower said. “Every goal he sets for himself, he seems to accomplish. The fact that he [chose] to spend the one year anniversary of his injury with us, that just shows who he is and the kind of people in the military he represents.”
Kander says that while filming may be on hold for now, he’d love to keep documenting Jones, who recently began an internship with the FBI.
“There’s no saying that what happens in the future won’t be even more compelling than what we’ve seen,” Kander said. “It’s interesting, I think heroism comes out when people are put in situations that they never thought they’d be put in. I don’t think Rob would define himself as a hero, but looking how he has handled this situation, it’s hard not to use the word heroic.”
To watch “Survive. Recover. Live.” go to http://www.vimeo.com and search “Survive. Recover. Live. (The Rob Jones Story).”
Purple heart recipient Rob Jones takes questions from the audience at Loudoun Valley High School July 22 after the screening of a short documentary about his recovery from an Improvised Explosive Device blast in Afghanistan that claimed both his legs. Colleagues and others interviewed for the film praised Jones for his optimism, drive and sense of humor even before the injury that persisted throughout his recovery and made him an inspiration. -Times-Mirror Staff Photo/Beverly Denny
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Re: A soldier’s story
Posted by:
Inspirational
()
Date: September 08, 2011 12:04PM
This is such an inspiring story!