Injured while volunteering in Syria
Donation protected
Here’s Porter’s story… well, some of the high points –
(Porter is the second from the right. This campaign is being put together by Porter's Dad (Far Right), and Porter's older Brother (Far Left))
Porter comes from a family of U.S. Armed Forces Veterans, and Porter is a veteran of the War On Terror. A member of the Army 10th Mountain Division, he spent 15 months in Iraq, at FOB Speicher, as a member of Merlin Recovery Team. He participated in over 100 recovery missions, and received an Army Commendation Medal with a V Device (for valor) for his actions there.
In 2015, while attending college, Porter watched the advances ISIS was making across Syria and Iraq, and their deplorable acts of violence against humanity. He began to wonder who, if anyone, would stop them. As he investigated further, he found that the Syrian and Iraqi Kurds were in fact fighting back, and making progress. He also learned that other concerned individuals from all over the globe, who shared his concerns, had taken it upon themselves to travel to Syria to support the Kurds against ISIS. The Syrian Kurds in particular, caught his interest. After a lengthy, and thorough investigation into their beliefs and positions on everything from family and gender equality, to politics and religious freedom, he decided that theirs was a cause he would support. In his own words: “ ISIS is the greatest evil of my generation, and I feel like their swift and complete destruction is one of my generation's solemn responsibilities.”
On January 11, 2016, Porter began his trip, which brought him through Jordan and Iraq to Qamislo, Syria. Along the way, he lost all of his belongings except for what he had in a small backpack.
He had paid his own expenses to get there, and had committed to working with the Kurdish forces for at least six-months. His initial months there were spent learning Kurmanji, and helping out any way he could. He also taught computer skills and math to kids who were too young to join the fight. He was taken in, and treated like a hero for simply having the courage to show up.
He also got to know some of the other ‘westerners’ who were working and fighting with the Kurds. Some of them were organizing a medical unit to provide immediate aid to wounded fighters and civilians at the front lines. Porter had been cross-trained as a medic while in Iraq, and knew this was a place where he could really make a difference. He joined the unit, received additional training, shared what he already knew, and went to work saving lives.
Then came the offensive to cut ISIS off from their supply lines into Turkey, and take back lost territory. The first major operation, which began May 31st, was to take back the City of Manbij. As the Kurdish forces surrounded and then started to push toward the center of the City, the fighting intensified. The medical teams that were deployed behind the front lines were very busy treating both wounded soldiers, and injured citizens fleeing the brutalities of ISIS as their neighborhoods were liberated.
On July 13th the coalition forces cut through the middle of Manbij. Although Porter had told his mother that he would stay in the relative safety behind the front lines, he and another medic moved forward into the City, in order to be better situated to provide immediate aid to stabilize the wounded, rather than waiting for the cover of darkness for the wounded to be transported to them outside the city. The next day, July 14th, the six-month anniversary of his arrival in Syria, the vehicle Porter was riding in hit a mine, and he was seriously injured. U.S. Special Forces personnel that had joined the fight in and around Manbij, and had gotten to know Porter and his team, insisted that he be taken to their aid station near Kobani. After receiving aid there, he was flown by helicopter to Baghdad, where he was admitted to the Diplomatic Hospital. At that point, the U.S. State Department mission at the Embassy in Baghdad took over Porter’s case.
He has received excellent care from the personnel at the hospital. They have arranged for follow-up care for Porter at the University of Utah Medical School, which will be provided free of charge. Unfortunately, his passport, cell phone, computer, clothing, and all of his other belongings were misplaced in the effort to get him to safety. He has only his wristwatch, a bracelet, a hospital gown, and some clothing that has been donated by personnel working with him, and others who are aware of his situation. His case is unusual by State Department standards. They deal with citizens who have lost their passports and other belongings every day. They’re not used to dealing with someone who has lost everything and sustained injuries on a battlefield. That said, they have done heroic work on Porter’s behalf.
It is now time for Porter to come home. Although the helicopter transport and hospital care have been provided by the U.S. Military and the State Department, the cost for a replacement passport, the visa and fees to enter Jordan and stay in a hotel for a night, and air transportation from Baghdad to Salt Lake City, not to mention the replacement of all that he has lost, will have to be borne by him and his family.
The family is hoping to raise enough money to defray the hard costs of getting Porter back home. It breaks down as follows:
Replacement passport $135.00
Visa & Fees $468.65
Hotel in Amman (1 night) $187.44
Airfare – Baghdad to Amman $1,100.00
Airfare – Amman to Salt Lake City $1,867.65
$3,758.74
If any additional funds are raised, they will be used for supplies to care for Porter’s wounds, and to perhaps replace some of the personal belongings that he has lost.
Thank you, in advance, to all who choose to help.
(Porter is the second from the right. This campaign is being put together by Porter's Dad (Far Right), and Porter's older Brother (Far Left))
Porter comes from a family of U.S. Armed Forces Veterans, and Porter is a veteran of the War On Terror. A member of the Army 10th Mountain Division, he spent 15 months in Iraq, at FOB Speicher, as a member of Merlin Recovery Team. He participated in over 100 recovery missions, and received an Army Commendation Medal with a V Device (for valor) for his actions there.
In 2015, while attending college, Porter watched the advances ISIS was making across Syria and Iraq, and their deplorable acts of violence against humanity. He began to wonder who, if anyone, would stop them. As he investigated further, he found that the Syrian and Iraqi Kurds were in fact fighting back, and making progress. He also learned that other concerned individuals from all over the globe, who shared his concerns, had taken it upon themselves to travel to Syria to support the Kurds against ISIS. The Syrian Kurds in particular, caught his interest. After a lengthy, and thorough investigation into their beliefs and positions on everything from family and gender equality, to politics and religious freedom, he decided that theirs was a cause he would support. In his own words: “ ISIS is the greatest evil of my generation, and I feel like their swift and complete destruction is one of my generation's solemn responsibilities.”
On January 11, 2016, Porter began his trip, which brought him through Jordan and Iraq to Qamislo, Syria. Along the way, he lost all of his belongings except for what he had in a small backpack.
He had paid his own expenses to get there, and had committed to working with the Kurdish forces for at least six-months. His initial months there were spent learning Kurmanji, and helping out any way he could. He also taught computer skills and math to kids who were too young to join the fight. He was taken in, and treated like a hero for simply having the courage to show up.
He also got to know some of the other ‘westerners’ who were working and fighting with the Kurds. Some of them were organizing a medical unit to provide immediate aid to wounded fighters and civilians at the front lines. Porter had been cross-trained as a medic while in Iraq, and knew this was a place where he could really make a difference. He joined the unit, received additional training, shared what he already knew, and went to work saving lives.
Then came the offensive to cut ISIS off from their supply lines into Turkey, and take back lost territory. The first major operation, which began May 31st, was to take back the City of Manbij. As the Kurdish forces surrounded and then started to push toward the center of the City, the fighting intensified. The medical teams that were deployed behind the front lines were very busy treating both wounded soldiers, and injured citizens fleeing the brutalities of ISIS as their neighborhoods were liberated.
On July 13th the coalition forces cut through the middle of Manbij. Although Porter had told his mother that he would stay in the relative safety behind the front lines, he and another medic moved forward into the City, in order to be better situated to provide immediate aid to stabilize the wounded, rather than waiting for the cover of darkness for the wounded to be transported to them outside the city. The next day, July 14th, the six-month anniversary of his arrival in Syria, the vehicle Porter was riding in hit a mine, and he was seriously injured. U.S. Special Forces personnel that had joined the fight in and around Manbij, and had gotten to know Porter and his team, insisted that he be taken to their aid station near Kobani. After receiving aid there, he was flown by helicopter to Baghdad, where he was admitted to the Diplomatic Hospital. At that point, the U.S. State Department mission at the Embassy in Baghdad took over Porter’s case.
He has received excellent care from the personnel at the hospital. They have arranged for follow-up care for Porter at the University of Utah Medical School, which will be provided free of charge. Unfortunately, his passport, cell phone, computer, clothing, and all of his other belongings were misplaced in the effort to get him to safety. He has only his wristwatch, a bracelet, a hospital gown, and some clothing that has been donated by personnel working with him, and others who are aware of his situation. His case is unusual by State Department standards. They deal with citizens who have lost their passports and other belongings every day. They’re not used to dealing with someone who has lost everything and sustained injuries on a battlefield. That said, they have done heroic work on Porter’s behalf.
It is now time for Porter to come home. Although the helicopter transport and hospital care have been provided by the U.S. Military and the State Department, the cost for a replacement passport, the visa and fees to enter Jordan and stay in a hotel for a night, and air transportation from Baghdad to Salt Lake City, not to mention the replacement of all that he has lost, will have to be borne by him and his family.
The family is hoping to raise enough money to defray the hard costs of getting Porter back home. It breaks down as follows:
Replacement passport $135.00
Visa & Fees $468.65
Hotel in Amman (1 night) $187.44
Airfare – Baghdad to Amman $1,100.00
Airfare – Amman to Salt Lake City $1,867.65
$3,758.74
If any additional funds are raised, they will be used for supplies to care for Porter’s wounds, and to perhaps replace some of the personal belongings that he has lost.
Thank you, in advance, to all who choose to help.
Organizer and beneficiary
Ian Goodman
Organizer
Orem, UT
Porter Goodman
Beneficiary
