Army sergeant injured in Afghanistan gets Veterans Day surprise from 'The View'
Army Sgt. Nathan Shumaker and his wife, Missy, received a Veterans Day surprise from "The View" to go along with their new specially adapted house he received from Homes For Our Troops.
While serving his second tour in Afghanistan in 2010, Nathan suffered severe injuries to his legs by a mortar round. He was taken to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, and his left leg had to be amputated.
Shumaker went through multiple surgeries and was awarded a Purple Heart for the injuries he endured while serving.
On "The View" Wednesday, the Shumakers opened up about how daily life for the entire family had been a struggle in their home.
"We have a two-story house, and I say the stairs are a pretty big challenge," Nathan Shumaker said. "There's some days I really can't wear my leg, and we have two kids, and my wife worries about me whenever I put our daughter up to bed."
"Not being able to help, not being able to do anything ... that's not me," he added.
Missy Shumaker said without a shower properly suited for an amputee, her husband had fallen while showering, once even slamming his his knee through a wall.
Homes For Our Troops, a nonprofit organization that builds and donates custom homes for severely injured post-9/11 veterans, heard about Nathan Shumaker's story and made him the 300th recipient of a specially adapted home.
"It's helping give our kids a less stressful environment to grow up in, and it's giving Nate the independence he so deserves," his wife said.
The Shumakers' new home came at a great time, with new daily COVID-19 cases in the United States hitting a new record this weekend, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.
To make remote work and school in their new home even easier and more enjoyable for the entire family, "The View" enlisted the help of the technology-focused online retailer Newegg to give them a brand-new home theater and home office setup.
The home theater includes a 65-inch TV, sound bar and gaming console, and the home office has two notebook computers and printers as well as a new ABS gaming computer complete with a monitor, keyboard, mouse and gaming headset.
"Thank you very much. Thank you," the veteran said through tears. "I'm not a really big crier but — sorry."
Despite the ongoing pandemic, Homes For Our Troops was able to safely continue building the Shumakers' home. He said the house was "worth the wait."
As for Missy Shumaker, the home has provided her with reassurance now that she doesn't have to agonize over safety concerns she faced with their old home. "We just are able to relax. I don't have to constantly worry, is he going to fall, is he going to hurt, you know, himself?"
"Now I just am able to just kind of relax and let him do things, and I know it's just been very, very relaxing ... a sense of freedom for him."
Nathan Shumaker said he is still in disbelief about their new home and keeps "thinking somebody's going to come in and say, 'Alright well hey, you guys had your fun. Time for somebody else to come in.'"
He said having a new home that is adjusted to his needs as an amputee has changed his mentality about his situation. "I'm not fighting the stairs. I'm not jumping over a big, huge lip to get in the shower. It's wide open around here ... I can use my wheelchair. It's actually amazing."
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