*Soldier loses leg, not heart (10/17/04)

Soldier loses leg, not heart / Fitted with a prosthetic, Army grunt works his way back into fighting shape
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NEWS
ESTES THOMPSON
Associated Press
743 Words
17 October 2004
Houston Chronicle
4 STAR
3
English
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle
FORT BRAGG, N.C.

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - George Perez still feels the sweat between his toes when he exercises. He's still plagued with nagging cramps in his calf muscle. And sometimes, when he gets out of bed at night without thinking, he topples over.

Perez, 21, lost his leg to a roadside bomb in Iraq more than a year ago, but despite the phantom pains that haunt him, he says he is determined to prove to the Army that he is no less of a soldier.

"I'm not ready to get out yet," he says. "I'm not going to let this little injury stop me from what I want to do."