MSCCN :: Success Stories - The Carpenter's

Success Stories
A note from our MSCCN President, Deb Kloeppel: The Carpenter's marriage exemplifies the military's values of duty, honor, courage and commitment. This military couple faced great challenges, remained dedicated to military service and maintained gainful employment, as they journeyed the hardships that life threw at them. In the end, the Carpenters prove that serving our country, serving our communities and serving the corporations that are willing to hire our military and caregivers, can be perfectly balanced.
Meet the Carpenters: Jody Carpenter, a Reserve HM2, did not know the difficulties he would face when he volunteered to fill a billet for an eight-month deployment. HM2 Carpenter felt he was doing his job to support a Marine unit in need of a medic. While he was preparing for the deployment, his wife, Jennifer, was preparing to receive a kidney transplant. This is their story. Jennifer had a sudden life-altering event when she began having kidney problems at the age of seventeen. She was diagnosed with Glomerulonephritis, a disease in which the kidneys' filters become inflamed and cause rapid kidney function loss. She was given strong medication and placed on the kidney transplant list.
Jennifer beat the odds by not only graduating high school but by becoming a radiology technician. Through her continuing struggle with her health, Jennifer maintained employment as a Radiology Tech Coordinator for nine years. Jody and Jennifer, both natives of Missouri, were wed in 1999. Jody, a Corpsman of seven years, volunteered to activate in order to fill a billet with Weapons Company 3rd Battalion 24th Marine Regiment in Springfield Missouri. In order for him to receive the necessary certifications prior to his deployment, Jody was sent to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Pendleton, CA. On July 6th of 2004, the night before Jody’s deployment and nearly thirteen years after Jennifer had been diagnosed with a life threatening disease, they received a call that a donor had been located. If Jennifer wanted the transplant, she would need to undergo surgery early the next morning. While Jody prepared for war, Jennifer prepared for a long recovery. Yet both were unsure of how to prepare for the unknown without each other. Recovery for Jennifer was anything but easy. For the first half of Jody’s deployment, Jennifer was very ill. There was little time for her to think about how much she missed her husband. She suffered through the complications of gout and the pain of joint inflammation. On top of that, during the Christmas holiday Jennifer developed a blood clot in her leg. In January, Jennifer’s time of recuperation was made even more busy when one their dogs had pups. Jennifer’s parents, in-laws and nieces helped care for her and kept her company during Jody’s absence. As Jennifer began feeling better, she went back to her work at the hospital as a Radiology Tech Coordinator. Everything was going great. In March, she received a nonspecific email from her husband that he was fine. However, the vagueness of the message worried her. A few days later Jennifer received a call from a duty officer in of California that confirmed Jennifer’s fear. Jody had been injured. Jody had been in the middle of a convoy rig patrol and his rig had landed on an IED, Improvised Explosive Device. Jody’s side of the vehicle was hit. Jody was kept overnight in a field hospital because he was knocked unconscious. His right arm was full of shrapnel from the explosion. According to Jennifer, the doctors felt that the shrapnel would eventually work itself out, so surgery was not performed. Jody returned home with his unit as scheduled in March of 2005. Jennifer stated that initially Jody’s arm was having difficulty healing. He experienced numbness, nerve pain and occasional twitching. Fortunately, Jody currently does not complain of pain or remnant damage from the incident any longer. Jody remains attached as an HM2 in the military and he is expected to make a full recovery. Both, he and Jennifer, enjoy and treasure the time they share together. Their love and support for each other has pulled them through the tough times that seemed hopeless. We owe our deepest gratitude to families like the Carpenters for enduring these hardships in order to ensure that we enjoy the freedoms to which we, as Americans, are accustomed. Jody and Jennifer, we thank you!