Marine veteran who suffered near-fatal injury in Iraq gets surprise gift: 'Those are happy tears'

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Ask anyone who's served, and they'll tell you how much they value their formal uniforms. For a Tampa man who suffered a near-fatal injury in Iraq, not having his dress blues made his battle at home that much harder until a chance meeting with a fellow Marine.

The backstory:

So, for 51-year-old Jose Pequeno, it was to be just another warm summer morning in St. Petersburg, supporting a 5K charity run to prevent military suicide. But, he'd soon learn why he was really there. 

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Pequeno survived one of the most horrific war injuries on record, so his is a story of great sacrifice. His mother, Nellie's, is one of great devotion.

Pequeno was a military police officer on patrol with the Army National Guard in Ramadi, Iraq in February 2006. An insurgent tossed a grenade into the turret opening in the roof of his humvee and it exploded. His driver was killed instantly. Pequeno's injuries were so severe his comrades thought he was also dead.

"I got the phone call," Nellie told FOX 13 holding back tears. "And, it was a phone call that took a piece of me that I won't be able to get back."

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Pequeno just happened to have his door cracked open just enough for him to be blown out of the truck, which helped absorb some of the blast. But, the entire left side of his head was gone.

"He lost half of his brain. Fifty one percent," Nellie said. 

The Army wouldn't even fly Nellie to see him overseas as every doctor who saw him was convinced he wouldn't be alive when she arrived. So, they did what they could to stabilize him and flew him to the Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland where Nellie was waiting and refusing to give up hope.

"Nobody thought he'd survive," she said. "Good or bad there's always a purpose and I believe in that, and I always said he's gonna live."

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Remarkably, 34 surgeries and nearly two decades later Pequeno is not only living but saving lives. He has very limited use of his left hand, cannot speak and cannot walk, but Nellie said he understands everything and can communicate with his eyes and with some sounds. But on more than one occasion, Nellie told FOX 13's Mark Wilson in their Land O' Lakes home that fellow Marines or soldiers would call Pequeno, sharing their own emotional struggles and telling him they're giving up.

"I would translate for them [since Pequeno is unable to speak] and tell them 'no, he's telling you no, he's crying, don't do that,'" she said proudly.

It's worked every time.   

"It's not just saving lives, it's giving purpose to people," Nellie says. "They look at him and say who am I to not want to do things if he's doing this?" 

Dig deeper:

Still, Pequeno's heart wasn't whole. Long before he became the youngest chief of police in Sugar Hill, NH at 29 years old, then joined the Army National Guard, Pequeno followed his father and grandfather joining the Marine Corps first out of high school.

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"He used to say that's the uniform I want to wear. Even when he went into the Army National Guard, he would always say 'I'm a Marine.'"

But when they were invited to a military ball last fall, they realized he no longer had his Marine dress blues.

"He started crying," Nellie said. "Jose just started crying." 

Still, they went and bumped into Jerry Shaffer, a Marine running a foundation to prevent veteran suicide, the Red Star Foundation. Nellie pulled him aside.

"She said ‘Jose gets mad at me when I dress him in his Army uniform, because he wants to wear his Marine uniform,’" Shaffer said. "And I said, 'why doesn't he?' She said 'he's outgrown it.' So I immediately looked at her and said, 'I'm gonna get him a set.'"

Four months later, at that church parking lot in St. Pete where Pequeno was watching the 5K, Shaffer surprised him with a new set of Marine Corps dress blues. Hat, gloves and all. Jose was as excited and animated as he's ever been, even shedding a few tears while Nellie looked on tearfully herself. 

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"This means so much to him," she said over the roar of an appreciate crowd. "Those are happy tears."

What they're saying:

Shaffer said he couldn't have done it alone. He said the Marine Corps League Detachment 54 and Order of the Purple Heart Chapters helped make Jose's uniform happen.

And the moment they got home, Pequeno didn't even have to ask. Nellie and Pequeno's nurse put his uniform on. Hat, gloves and all.

"He looks so handsome," Nellie said with a tear. "He's gone through so much. But, I wouldn't change it for the world. Wouldn't change a thing, would you, Jose?" as she glances at him.

Pequeno gently nodded himself.

What you can do:

September is suicide prevention month with a focus on veterans who are at a higher risk than the general population. The Veterans Crisis Line is staffed 24-7, 365 days a year. You can chat with them at veteranscrisisline.net/chat or just dial 9-8-8.