Sergeant Major Timothy Drysdale struggled to share his story of Iraq.
He was shot at close range multiple times. The artery in his right leg was severed, his femur bone was shattered and he suffered shrapnel wounds to his left leg and lower body. Paramedics dragged him on a plastic litter over a mile under heavy gunfire to a helicopter. Drysdale went unconscious from blood loss. When paramedics couldn’t find a pulse, he was resuscitated multiple times during his transport to the field hospital.
He was finally transferred to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center for 9 weeks. A volunteer from the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) visited him every single day he was there.
Today, Drysdale has a prosthetic leg. However, you would never know it when he is practicing ju jitsu. Drysdale believes that his martial arts training with local sensei Bill Oliver is a vital part of his rehabilitation.
Oliver is particularly sensitive to the needs of veterans since he was a member of the U.S. Army Special Forces and former Ranger. He has practiced multiple forms of martial arts including karate, wing chun, judo and taekwondo but prefers aiki ju jitsu because of its practical application to real life situations.
Oliver spearheaded the first Naples ju jitsu fundraiser for the WWP with a martial arts seminar at his dojo. The fundraiser was open to the public and ju jitsu masters from all over the United States came to demonstrate at the weekend seminar. The fundraiser held special meaning to the masters as they have each had personal experience with the WWP. All of the masters are members of the Special Forces unit in the military and have used martial arts in combat.
The WWP began when wounded service members returned from Afghanistan and Iraq. Severely injured service members faced overwhelming obstacles in the civilian world. Family and other veterans formed the WWP to provide the assistance that the wounded service members desperately needed. The program provides comprehensive assistance from the moment of injury to total rehabilitation and re-entry to civilian life. For many of the wounded service members, martial arts training has become the most effective form of therapy in their recovery.
It’s not often that you see adults brutally punch each other and then immediately hug, however, the ju jitsu weekend seminar was filled with injuries followed by a warm embrace.
“Aiki ju jitsu is effective because the difference in size between opponents is irrelevant. That’s why it’s good even for women as a method of self-defense. Anyone can be trained to disable an assailant,” Oliver said.
The seminar was a mysterious mix of group therapy and aggressive real life self-defense training. Oliver communicates the mission of the WWP: “To honor and empower wounded warriors” through his methodology of instruction. He helps his students to regain confidence by building physical strength. He encourages mental control by requiring discipline and the students have an opportunity to release their anger using forceful combat moves.
“From day one you get hugged. Sensei Oliver is a big guy and his heart is twice as big,” Drysdale said.
The ju jitsu fundraising seminar was filled to capacity with the audience spilling out of the dojo onto the sidewalk and street. The ju jitsu masters, audience and students all donated to the WWP. However, the real gift to the WWP was not the donation, it was the help Oliver provided to those in need.
The WWP is currently headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla. Additional information can be found at www.woundedwarriorproject.org. For more information or to participate in future fundraising seminars at the dojo, log onto www.naplesaikijujitsu.com
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