Recovery Mission

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Veteran Arturo Franco, who has served in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq, in his apartment in Wilsonville

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Veteran Arturo Franco, who has served in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq, in his apartment in Wilsonville

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ARTURO FRANCO IN FRONT OF A FLAG SIGNED BY SOLDIERS OF THE 82ND <span

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ARTURO FRANCO IN FRONT OF A FLAG SIGNED BY SOLDIERS OF THE 82ND <span

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Franco finds it difficult to go out in public. He shops at midnight to avoid crowds, takes sleeping pills many nights, and experiences severe panic attacks a couple of times each month. “I’m not who I used to be,” he says. “I sacrificed my innocence a

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Franco finds it difficult to go out in public. He shops at midnight to avoid crowds, takes sleeping pills many nights, and experiences severe panic attacks a couple of times each month. “I’m not who I used to be,” he says. “I sacrificed my innocence a

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JOHN FETT AND HIS MOTHER, MARY GEDDRY, AT THEIR</s

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JOHN FETT AND HIS MOTHER, MARY GEDDRY, AT THEIR</s

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JACOB MEEKS, IN HIS DORM ROOM AT PORTLAND STATE UN

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JACOB MEEKS, IN HIS DORM ROOM AT PORTLAND STATE UN

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SERGIO KOCHERGIN AT HIS HOME IN EUGENE, OREGON

Born in Ukraine, Sergio Kochergin, 24, em

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SERGIO KOCHERGIN AT HIS HOME IN EUGENE, OREGON

Born in Ukraine, Sergio Kochergin, 24, em

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ASH WOOLSON AT HIS HOME IN BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON

To help pay for college, Ash Woolson,

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ASH WOOLSON AT HIS HOME IN BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON

To help pay for college, Ash Woolson,

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ASH WOOLSON AT HIS HOME IN BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON

His house is a gathering place for tho

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ASH WOOLSON AT HIS HOME IN BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON

His house is a gathering place for tho

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SETH MANZEL (IN DOORWAY) AND TWO FRIENDS AT A FOURTH OF <span class="

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SETH MANZEL (IN DOORWAY) AND TWO FRIENDS AT A FOURTH OF <span class="

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SHAWN MCKENZIE AND HIS GRANDMOTHER, VIOLET HOLTORF, AT <span class="c

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SHAWN MCKENZIE AND HIS GRANDMOTHER, VIOLET HOLTORF, AT <span class="c

‹PREVNEXT›

LAST YEAR I BEGAN photographing veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars after they’d returned home to the Northwest. Initially, I was motivated by the fact that news articles, which tended to relay factual information about soldiers who were killed, rarely told the stories of those who came back wounded, whether physically or psychologically.

But over time, my reasons for shooting these images became more personal. A decorated veteran of World War II, my 85-year-old father had begun to struggle with symptoms of old age. His sense of time started to collapse; the past became his present. He began to talk about combat experiences he’d suppressed for more than 60 years. I realized that some of his behavior during my childhood—a tendency to withdraw, avoidance of crowds—resembled the post—combat stress exhibited by the recent generation of vets.

I’ve heard that every American knew a soldier during World War II, a fact that placed that war at the forefront of our cultural psyche. But because fewer soldiers have been deployed in the current conflict, not as many of us personally know someone who has fought. I’ve come to see these new veterans as our invisible warriors. Too many of their stories remain untold.

After being discharged, soldiers are largely left alone to process what they experienced in war. They must navigate a complex psychic terrain, one that’s often characterized by overwhelming feelings of shame, distrust, and alienation. Many veterans tend to cope with these emotions through self-destructive behavior—alcohol abuse or bouts of explosive, misdirected rage. Some vets report that in dreams and nightmarish flashbacks, when memories of all that they’ve lived through well up, the enemy seems more elusive and frightening because it’s now coming from within.

The veterans in these pages displayed great courage and generosity by telling their stories. In sharing them, I hope that we are better able to separate the human face of the warrior from the political vagaries of war.

Published in the Weekend Getaways issue of Portland Monthly.