Sam wright

Time to pay tribute to a hero you may have never heard of. An American warrior refused to quit after an IED nearly burned him alive in Afghanistan. In December 2005, U.S. Air Force Tactical Air Control Party specialist Israel Del Toro was riding in a Humvee when it struck a roadside bomb in the mountains of Afghanistan. Engulfed in flames, he threw himself into a creek and kept relaying airstrike coordinates for his unit before collapsing. He suffered burns over 80 percent of his body, lost fingers, and spent three months in a coma. Doctors gave him a 15 percent chance of survival and believed he would never walk or breathe without a respirator. Del Toro refused to accept that fate. He endured more than 100 surgeries and years of brutal rehabilitation. In 2010 he made history by becoming the first fully combat-disabled airman to re-enlist in the Air Force. He went on to mentor new tactical airmen, win a gold medal at the Invictus Games, complete his 131st parachute jump, and receive the Pat Tillman Award for Service. He retired in 2019 after 22 years, strictly on his own terms. Israel Del Toro’s story is a reminder of the unmatched resilience of the American warfighter. Real strength is measured by the will to keep fighting long after the body has every reason to quit. #AmericanHero #Warfighter