Less than two years after joining the Army Infantry, Richard headed to Iraq for a 15-month combat deployment in Iraq's Anbar Province, also known as the "Triangle of Death." The soldiers' very first patrol resulted in severe injuries and a medivac. Firefights, mortar attacks, and IEDs were routine: “Multiple times a day, every day,” Richard said. “I got to the point where I didn’t care about anything at all. I had no fear. It was like my brain shut off. As a unit, we had a lot of hard days - more life-altering injuries and loss of life than I like to remember." Those events ultimately took their toll, and Richard medically retired. But it wasn’t until he connected with an Army buddy he’d s