Soldier overcomes adversity

Walking through Steven G. Mihaylo Hall at Cal State Fullerton, Chang Wong looks like any other student. No one would guess that the reserved 28-year-old marketing major lost something that many of us would find devastating. His legs.

Wong first came to the United States with his parents at the age of two from Malaysia. Growing up, Wong had the life of most American children, not remembering much of the country he came from at such a young age.

During his senior year of high school, after receiving his green card, Wong made the decision to join the Army at the urging of some friends.

“I had just gotten my green card while still somewhat in high school, almost graduating and when I got my green card, I was going to attend Pasadena City College but they were going to charge me out-of-state tuition,” Wong said. “So they told me to come back in a year so I decided to take some time off, relax a bit. Within that one-year time frame, I had a couple of buddies who wanted to join the military and they said, ‘Hey, you want to join the military?’ and I thought, ‘Sure! Why not?’ Get some real-world experience and live on my own for a bit.”

Wong joined the Army with a friend in August 2001. He broke the news to his parents the day he left, waiting until the recruiter came to pick him up.

“I basically said, ‘Mom, Dad, I’m heading out, probably won’t be back for a while,” Wong said. “My mom cried of course; my dad, he didn’t know what to say besides being supportive, and my brothers, they were supportive too.”

After leaving his family behind, Wong was deployed to Korea, but he would later be moved to Iraq. Wong served almost a full four years before the day he lost his legs.

While serving in Iraq in May 2005, Wong’s tank was hit by an improvised explosive devise (IED) on an early morning patrol. Of the four men inside, Wong’s injuries were by far the most severe. Both of Wong’s legs were amputated below the knee, taking away his ability to walk.

“We were patrolling around the area making sure there (were) no suspicious activities, no one planting IEDs anywhere,” Wong said. “It was a very early morning patrol. Normally my tank crew preferred to do the afternoon, but for some reason that day we did the morning.”

Wong’s loader and tank commander both suffered shrapnel wounds while the driver of the tank tore a ligament in his shoulder.

After the explosion, Wong was sent to a hospital in Iraq where he stayed for about a week while doctors tried to stabilize him. From there, he was flown to Germany where he spent three weeks due to his lungs collapsing. After he was strong enough to travel, Wong was moved to Texas where he received treatment until April 2006.

“If he had U.S. doctors working on him, he would have died,” said Julie Schol, whose husband served with Wong. “The German doctors used an artificial lung that wasn’t FDA approved. Thank God he had those doctors working on him.”

Once settled in Texas, Wong began the long trial of recovery. Like many soldiers, he experienced depression and fear when he woke up in the hospital after his injuries, unsure of what to do.

“I was quite depressed but at the same time very edgy. I guess it could be fear too,” Wong said. “I just remember I had a hard time sleeping. I didn’t want to go back to sleep because I was afraid if I fell back asleep, I wouldn’t wake up.”

Upon arriving at the hospital, Wong was put in a wheelchair until he could be fitted with prosthetics. Once receiving his new legs, Wong faced the challenge of learning how to walk and run all over again. Wong found a friend and helpful competitor in another amputee at the hospital.

The wounded Marine and Wong quickly became friends, challenging and pushing themselves to do better. With this constant motivation, Wong learned how to walk again in about one to two months.

Despite the motivation from his new friend, Wong still suffered from depression. It wasn’t until his mother visited that his outlook began to change.

“I did go through depression while in the hospital and the one thing that really got me out of it was a slap by my mom and lots of tears,” Wong said. “From that point on I told myself I had to get better.”

After regaining the ability to walk and with the support of his family and friends, Wong left Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas and came back to California.

“When he first came back, I was nervous to see what he looked like, what his legs looked like,” Schol said. “But then I saw him and I just thought, ‘I can do this, I can do this.’ And it’s amazing because he’s doing things now that he always did before.”

With everything Wong had been through, he would have one more obstacle to overcome, adjusting back into civilian life.

“It took a little bit of time and effort to actually get adjusted back because in the military it’s so structured that you know what you need to do,” Wong said. “Once you get out of the military and you’re back in school, you have no one pushing you; you just kind of have to push yourself.”

As far as re-adjusting with his injuries, Wong found it relatively easy.

“I adapted fairly quickly. I guess when I was receiving treatment at Fort Sam Houston there were other amputees and a lot of burn victims there, so I kind of felt at ease. They also had a therapy program where once a week, I think on Fridays, we would head out, we would do like a social gathering,” Wong said. “It kind of helped to get integrated back into society, and with that, it kind of helped me forget my problems and my issues.”

When he returned to California, Wong attended Pasadena City College before transferring to Fullerton where he met professor of English, Christopher McCabe, in 2008.

“It appeared to me that he had adapted well; he is a determined individual who is pressing on with his schooling,” McCabe said. “We went out to eat a couple of times, and he is just an all around good guy. He didn’t dwell on his injuries, and he was very engaged in the conversations, just like any other student.”

McCabe featured Wong in an article he wrote about veterans who were attending community college. McCabe was immediately struck by Wong’s personality.

“It struck me that there is real dignity in this person,” McCabe said. “Just the way he carries himself forward as a human being, whether or not he suffered an injury. It’s who he is.”

Wong made the decision to transfer to CSUF in 2008. After making the jump to a four-year university, Wong spent time deciding to become a marketing major. He started out with international business and then accounting. But when taking his first marketing class last semester, he realized it was a perfect fit.

With the support of friends and family, Wong has been able to persevere, still impressing people he meets.

“I was surprised that a person of that condition, going through all that, experiencing the war, maintained that kind of personal and emotional positiveness. It was such a shock and also an emotional experience for me,” said Joseph Chang, Veterans Student Services coordinator at CSUF and an Army veteran. “I would like to take him as a role model for other Veterans. I want to share his story.”

It has been over five years since his tank hit the IED in Iraq and Wong is living his life as any other student would, the only difference is the looks he gets every so often.

“Occasionally people would give me weird looks because I park in the disabled stall and then walk out,” Wong said. “You don’t really notice I’m wearing prosthetics. People still give me weird looks, but I try not to take too much offense to it.”

For now, Wong plans to continue going to school to earn his degree and then enter the workforce after graduation. As if he never lost his legs, Wong goes on with life and every day routines.

Wong said prosthetics are similar to real legs. “The only thing I would complain about would be I can’t be as active as I used to be,” Wong said. “With the prosthetics, I don’t have the same type of energy; it feels kind of heavy, but it’s not that bad. Once you get used to it, you don’t really notice it, except when you go up and down stairs.”

Wong has the continued support of those around him and continues to impress everyone he meets, keeping an upbeat attitude.

“I guess the easiest thing to do is give up,” Wong said. “The hardest thing to do is to live.”