Fort Irwin soldier recovering in D.C.

Fort Irwin soldier recovering in D.C.
Sgt. Mendoza adjusts to life as a double amputee while trying to maintain a positive attitude
By LISA HART/Staff Writer

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sgt. Manuel Mendoza said he does not even remember volunteering for the mission in Iraq that cost him both of his legs.

"To me it was just like I went to sleep the night before and then woke up here (Walter Reed Army Medical Center)," he said.

Early in October, Mendoza, a 23-year-old from Boonville, and Spc. Kenneth Bower, both members of Fort Irwin's 58th Combat Engineer Company, volunteered for a routine drop-off and pick-up operation in Sadr City, Iraq.