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All Were Forgotten… And Then Came John
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John Travers was born on a cold Monday in February, 1948 to John and Dorrie Travers of Harrisburg, PA.  Being “all boy,” John was a fun-loving prankster, finding inventive ways to get into mischief.  This all made him a perfect candidate for being an Altar Boy at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church.  Smart and athletic, John was consumed by school and sports, but he found time to master one thing… Basketball. By the time he reached his late teens at Bishop McDevitt Catholic High School, he was at the top of his game.  Playing with and against boys he had known since his playing days at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Catholic School, the Crusaders team of 1965-66 (his senior year) went on to the Pennsylvania Catholic Interscholastic Athletic Association Championship game, amassing a record of 23-4 that season. John continued his basketball career while on a full scholarship at Penn State University, but he left early and enlisted in the Army.  Like his father, who piloted a B-17 bomber in WWII, John choose Army aviation as his service specialty, becoming a DUST OFF pilot in a Huey UH1 helicopter.  John Travers rose to the rank of CW5 and, in his tour of duty, flew over 2,000 missions and is credited with saving over 2,150 lives. Being a DUST OFF pilot was one of the most dangerous Military Occupational Specialties (MOS) in Vietnam, flying into hot LZs to pick up wounded soldiers usually in a hail of gunfire.  John himself was shot down twice. Upon his return to the US, he was treated much like that of his fellow Vietnam Vets, with great distain.  Less than 24 hours after leaving the war in Vietnam, John was on a flight home from San Francisco to Harrisburg.  A female passenger refused to sit next to him, because he was dressed in his war-worn uniform. These veterans, men and women like John, served this nation, doing the job of fighting for those who yearned for freedom.  They didn’t make the rules nor call the shots, they just did the job that was asked of them by their Commander-in-Chief. After his tour of duty, John Travers stayed with the Army, training helicopter pilots for the US and her allies at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA.   John was approached to join the Vietnam Veterans Association (VVA) Chapter 542, and, soon after joining, he took command.  To the delight and pride of the membership, he turned VVA 542 into a powerful voice for all veterans throughout Central Pennsylvania.  It was at that time, after the war, that John entered his most daunting fight, backed by the United States Congress, taking on the Army he served and respected. John led a group of dedicated veterans and dignitaries in the fight with the Army for the creation and issuance of a medal of recognition for the service and sacrifice of the DUST OFF medics and crews.  The group designed and produced a beautiful “Combat Air Medic” badge and fought hard to have that honor recognized and awarded by a grateful nation.  Inroads have been made through their persistence, but the fight continues.

Combat Medic badges were awarded, deservedly so, to the medics on the ground deployed with the infantry units.  These units engaged in fierce fire fights with the Viet Cong, and many men were wounded.  However, these ground units often had days when they would see no action.  Conversely, DUST OFF Medics and crews flew day and night, flying into hot combat areas to retrieve the wounded. Theirs was the most hazardous of jobs in warfare. The red cross painted on the medevac Hueys became targets.

Early life of John Travers

John became a force in Harrisburg, advocating for veterans in the halls of government, both local and national.  He was active in support of his city and his alma mater, Bishop McDevitt High School, and is today a proud Crusader. It was at one particular meeting of the alumni, a planning committee for their 40th Class Reunion, that John reconnected with a fellow classmate, Kathleen Torchia.  Kathleen had returned to Harrisburg to care for her father and reconnected with her friend Sandy Allen who had invited Kathleen to the meeting that magical night.  John and Kathleen had attended the Senior Prom together 40 years earlier.  Soon after their chance reunion, began to date.  The two Crusaders were married in Harrisburg on September 06, 2005. This was a match made in Heaven, the two of them were the happiest they had ever been.  But inexplicably, six months into their marriage, John began to change, subtly at first.   He became increasingly more withdrawn, moodier.  Kathleen thought there had to be something deeper at the root of this change.   Finally, through Kathleen’s urging, John agreed to see the doctor… and her worst suspicions were confirmed. After many doctor’s visits, the final diagnosis was a rare form of T-Cell Lymphoma, which researchers had concluded was a result of his exposure to Agent Orange.  The treatment for his cancer stopped its advance, but the antibody cells triggered an autoimmune activity, that caused a “Paraneoplastic Cerebellar Degeneration,” which rendered John unable to function.  He had lost all motor skilled.  All this coupled with the raging PTSD, which began at the diagnosis of his illness, caused John to become more withdrawn and agitated.

Post Vietnam War, there was still no help for Veterans struggling with PTSD.  These veterans had lived lives on the edge, adrenaline fueling their every waking moment.  They had seen, done, and felt incomprehensibly horrible atrocities.

The WWII, Korean, and Vietnam Veterans just had to “deal with it”.   By the time these bitter and angry Vietnam Veterans were in their late 40’s and early 50’s, PTSD was rearing its ugly head, in spite of the alcohol, cigarettes, and whatever coping tools they had used.   But a life-threatening situation, a heartbreak or severe injury can unleash PTSD to the point at which emotions, fear and anger become uncontrollable. For eight and a half years, Kathleen cared for John at home as his primary care giver.  The resulting loss of his depth perception led to many falls, the worst of which broke his jaw in five places, his right elbow, and fractured his right kneecap (which left him with “drop foot”).  Kathleen decided a change of scenery and some warmer weather would be good for John, so she took him to Southern California, close to her daughter and grandchildren.  The two of them “wintered” in Orange County each of the subsequent years.  Just prior to their scheduled return to Harrisburg in 2014.  John’s condition had deteriorated to the point that she had to have him hospitalized in California. All the doctors that treated John told Kathleen that there was nothing more that could be done for him…  that his brain was like Swiss cheese.   They recommended she should try to move ahead with her life.  That was not what she wanted to hear, yet she tried.  She had been writing a book about John to honor him and to gain some sort of closure, but it was too difficult to live it and write about it at the same time.  That’s when she decided to make a documentary. In the course of making the film, when speaking to the American Legion, she was told of a treatment that might help John.  The Brain Treatment Center in Newport Beach treated john as well as other veterans suffering from traumatic brain injuries and PTSD with “Magnetic Resonance Therapy.”  The treatments were paid for through a grant from the American Legion and John had these treatments five days a week. Within days of starting the treatment, John’s demeanor changed dramatically.

Later John Travers

He was calmer than he had been in years, and he was beginning to communicate.  He was regaining his cognition, coordination, and strength.  Within a few weeks John was able to stand up from his wheelchair and, with the help of a walker, start to walk – a few steps in the beginning and soon was walking the length of a football field with assistance.  Sadly, after 6 months of daily treatments, funding sources for the Brain Treatment Center were no longer available, which left John and the other veterans without further therapy.  Kathleen and John’s hopes were crushed. But Kathleen would not give up on John.  His progress indicated that there was indeed a functioning brain that was regaining cognitive thinking, personal awareness, and both long-term and short-term memory.  John began singing along with his favorite Motown hits on the radio.  It was evident to Kathleen that more could and should be done.  She took John to see Dr. David A. Steenblock for Personalized Regenerative Therapy – adult stem cell infusion.  Within 3 months of the infusion, he showed renewed strength and mental sharpness.  He has had two subsequent infusion therapies since then and each time has shown us a little more of the “Old John!” John M. Travers may not regain 100% control of his body, but through Kathleen’s continuing efforts, John’s quality of life has improved despite all of the doctors’ prior negative diagnoses.  He makes amazing gains each day and he has set a goal for himself to be able return to Harrisburg to visit.  John’s story is long from over. Kathleen Torchia Travers continues to be John’s strongest and most vocal advocate for his health care.  Her message to all veterans and their loved ones is to never give up hope.  Modern medicine and alternative treatment practitioners are making new discoveries every day, and we need to do everything we can for the men and women of our military that have sacrificed so much for us.

Production
ALL WERE FORGOTTEN...AND THEN CAME JOHN
Executive Producer & Director
Kathleen Torchia Travers
Producer
Calvin L. Ligh
Editing
Ryan Randolph & Calvin L. Ligh
Cinematography
Patrick Fries, Chris Babbatt, Ryan Randolph, Jill Bray, Calvin L. Ligh,
Editing Location
Triscari Studios - 59 Central Blvd Camp Hill, PA 1011
Music
Kathleen Torchia Travers, Kevin Wilson, Gerald Rheault