Disabled Marine Vet Honored with Customized, All-Terrain Wheelchair

Scott Nokes lost his legs and his eyesight due to complications from an infection he acquired during his second deployment to Afghanistan.
Scott Nokes lost his legs and his eyesight due to complications from an infection he acquired during his second deployment to Afghanistan.

Freedom Alliance, an organization supporting our nation’s military families, is presenting a fully customized, all-terrain wheelchair to retired U.S. Marine Corporal Scott Nokes, a native of Neptune, New Jersey.

Freedom Alliance has found that outdoor activity and the camaraderie of fellow veterans are keys to a successful rehabilitation.

Similar customized chairs have been provided to 35 wounded troops nationwide, changing the lives of service members, by increasing their independence and reducing their reliance on others. (Courtesy of Freedom Alliance)
Similar customized chairs have been provided to 35 wounded troops nationwide, changing the lives of service members, by increasing their independence and reducing their reliance on others. (Courtesy of Freedom Alliance)

Wounded troops whose mobility is limited by injuries, however, find it difficult to participate without specialized assistance.

Freedom Alliance addresses this directly, providing amputees and paralyzed veterans with all-terrain and customized—comfortable—wheelchairs to meet each service member’s needs.

A former Rifleman, Corporal Nokes was twice deployed to Afghanistan.

During his second deployment Corporal Nokes was exposed to dysentery and sepsis, which resulted in his eventual loss of his vision and amputation of both legs below the knee.

(Hear directly from Corporal Nokes in this 2017 interview, courtesy of Freehold Township Day and YouTube. Posted on Jul 11, 2017.)

An avid hiker and camper, Corporal Nokes is also at work on his college degree, majoring in history, homeland security, and Braille literacy.

Corporal Nokes aims for a career in peer mentorship, to walk alongside fellow veterans coping with similar experiences.

Scott Nokes lost his legs and his eyesight due to complications from an infection he acquired in Afghanistan.

Freedom Alliance President, Tom Kilgannon will present the wheelchair and provide brief remarks about Corporal Nokes and his service to our country.

Corporal Nokes will also say a few words about this renewed independence and how the gift will aid in his continued recovery.

When our country needed him, Scott Nokes answered the call to serve,” said Kilgannon, “and the gift of this chair is the least we can do to help him in his recovery. It will be an honor to present it to him on October 1st.”

Tom Kilgannon, President, Freedom Alliance
Tom Kilgannon, President, Freedom Alliance

Members of the community are invited to attend this event and show their support for Corporal Nokes and United States injured service members.

When: Tuesday, October 1 at 10 a.m.

Where: Shark River Hills Fire Company – 200 Brighton Ave., Neptune Township, N.J. 07753

Similar customized chairs have been provided by Freedom Alliance to 35 wounded troops nationwide. 

Freedom Alliance is a charitable organization providing help and support to wounded troops and military families.

Additionally, Freedom Alliance has awarded $14 million in college scholarships to children of military heroes killed or disabled in military service and spent millions more helping injured veterans and their families with outdoor recreational therapy trips, Heroes Vacations, care packages for deployed troops, mortgage-free homes, all-terrain wheelchairs, and much more.

To Learn More about Freedom Alliance, please visit www.FreedomAlliance.org.

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