Wounded Warrior program rebuilds airmen's hope, sense of purpose

Former Staff Sgt. Tino Uli found it hard to put into words what he experienced during his three tours in Iraq.

He didn’t have to. The way the brawny ex-security forces airman apologetically paused, blinked back tears, and forced out a simple, “Stuff happened there,” told the story of the pain he’s been carrying since he first deployed 11 years ago.

But at a June 10 panel at the Air Force Association’s headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, Uli and two other airmen told the story of how they were able to bring themselves back from the despair caused by their physical and mental injuries with the help of the Air Force Wounded Warrior Program and its adaptive sports programs.