COLLIERVILLE, TN (abc24.com) - Two months after Munford Marine Christian Brown was nearly killed in Afghanistan, his neighbors are now stepping forward to help.
The Mid-South Wounded Warrior Project is one of the many groups coming to his aid. They're planning an Honor Ride to raise money for brown and his family.
The ride will start at the Recycle Biker Shop in Collierville and will end in Brown's hometown of Munford. It's a simple way to help the Marine who gave so much.
JR Reed hasn't seen his stepson, Corporal Christian Brown, since he was flown to a hospital in Germany in the middle of December, unsure if Brown would live or die.
"That was the hardest experience of my life, to walk in there and see him that way," Reed said.
Brown lost both legs, a finger and has gone through dozens of surgeries. Reed had to come home to take care of the couple's five other children. Brown's mother, Lynn, hasn't left the Marine's side.
"The phone has made a big difference connecting with the family," Reed said. "I feel like it puts us in the same room again, and he sounds real good."
But Corporal Brown has his most difficult battle yet: dealing with a new life that's foreign to him. That's where Dave and Amy Marek are stepping in to help. Amy Marek is the Executive Director of the Mid-South Wounded Warrior Project. They've been raising money for Brown and his family ever since the IED attack.
"They don't prepare you to come back like this, and that's the hardest part because they don't think about coming back without legs or arms, they do what they're told to do," she said. "He's got a lot ahead of him; he's going to have to have his house redone for handicapped access, there are more surgeries ahead. There is all kinds of things he's going to deal with even when he gets out."
Brown is expected to be in the hospital for about two years. His mother's been out of work to be by his side; the rest of the family is trying to visit him in D.C. whenever they can find cheap flights.
Marek's goal is to eliminate money as an issue for this Marine and his family. In late March they'll hold the Honor Ride for $10 a bike and $5 per passenger.
She told abc24.com, "Everybody's volunteering time, money, funds, whatever needs to be done to make this happen for this young man and his family."
And it hasn't gone unnoticed.
Reed said, "It really floors him how much people reach out."
The ride is March 24. If you can't ride, you still donate money to Brown and his family. For more information on the Honor Ride, visit
www.recyclebikershop.com/events.html
