Mentor Spotlight: Master Sergeant Rich Robertson

The blast erupted from beneath without warning. Sergeant First Class (SFC) Rich Robertson was on patrol near the border of Syria when his armored vehicle hit a mine. Four of Rich’s friends were killed in the explosion. Though he was lucky to survive, doctors told him that his T-5 vertebra was crushed, and he was now paralyzed from the waist down.

VetConnect Mentor Rich Robertson

MSG Rich Robertson, Wounded Warrior/VetConnect Mentor, with his family
After months of enduring a difficult recovery process, Rich returned to active duty and is now serving as a Master Sergeant in Special Operations Forces. Despite his demanding schedule, Rich generously serves in Enable America’s VetConnect program. As a mentor, he draws on his own experiences in order to guide more recently wounded service members through the recovery process.

“At the beginning the mentee is just starting to come to grips with the reality of their injury,” Rich says.

“I help just by listening and answering questions like How do you use the bathroom now? How do you drive? How do you fly on commercial airliners?”

VetConnect, provides answers to those questions, by connecting wounded veterans like Rich, with wounded warriors returning from combat. The program is designed to enhance existing rehabilitation programs and to actively engage local civic, business, and community leaders in the reorientation ofwounded warriors to their communities.

VetConnect supports the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the many private organizations that address the needs of wounded warriors through the operation of programs that help them adapt everyday routines to their disability. VetConnect mentors can also help mentees further their education or vocational training, and in some cases, help them secure jobs with government and private employers.

The key to the program’s success are the veterans who work with wounded warriors one-on-one. Because Rich can relate to his mentees’ experiences, his words connect on a deeper level. “I’ve experienced some of the same physical and mental challenges,” Rich says. “When I say ‘I know what you mean,’ I really do. Someone who is able-bodied or had no experience with that type of injury just doesn’t know how.”

Through his work with VetConnect, Rich truly embodies selfless service and the spirit of the mentoring program. “I’m a mentor because it’s the right thing to do, to share my experiences with those less experienced than me, and ensure they are equipped for success. I think sometimes I help just by being an example for them to look at and say “If that mutt can do it, I can, too.”
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