In the military, the word “waypoints” refers to guides on a map used to direct soldiers to a certain location. The waypoints retired Army Col. Greg Gadson had in mind for his life drastically changed in 2007 when he lost both his legs and severely injured his right arm in a roadside bomb attack in Iraq.
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Gadson, a Chesapeake native, was a football player at West Point from 1985 to 1988. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant of Field Artillery in 1989 and served in every major conflict of the past two decades, including Operations Desert Shield Kuwait, Operation Joint Forge in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
On May 7, 2007, while serving as commander of the 2nd Battalion, 32nd Field Artillery in Baghdad, Gadson suffered from the improvised explosive device attack that cost him his legs and normal use of his right arm and hand.
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Despite the injury, Gadson remained on active duty in the Army and continued to inspire others with his message of determination, courage, perseverance and teamwork.
After his injury, Gadson was invited by West Point classmate and former New York Giants wide receivers coach Mike Sullivan to attend a Giants game against the then Washington Redskins at FedEx Field. Gadson gave the team an inspirational speech before the game, which the Giants attributed to their win that day.
The victory began a 10-game winning streak, ending with the team’s win of Super Bowl XLII, and Gadson was given a specially minted Super Bowl ring for his contribution as the team’s motivational speaker.
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Retired Col. Greg Gadson and Terese Schlachter held a book talk and signing for their book, “Finding Waypoints: A Warrior&#8217;s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose,” at Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton on Feb. 1.
By Cameron Delean, cdelean@insidenova.com
Gadson assumed command of Fort Belvoir starting Jun. 25, 2012, where he became the Army’s first double amputee to command a garrison. Gadson also served as the director of the Army Wounded Warrior program. His awards include the Legion of Merit, three Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Army Commendation Medal. He is a graduate of Command and General Staff College in Kansas and holds master degrees in information systems from Webster University and in policy management from Georgetown University. He also holds an honorary doctorate of law from Webster University.
Gadson’s story of resilience spread like wildfire, landing him a role in “Battleship,” a 2012 American science fiction war film, as war veteran Lt. Col. Mick Canale. And in 2023, Gadson made a guest appearance on the television series &#8220;NCIS: Los Angeles.&#8221;
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As a television news producer, Terese Schlachter was on assignment at Walter Reed to do a story on its newest rehab facility. Gadson was demonstrating some of the equipment for Schlachter when he fell, but his determination to get back up is what inspired Schlachter to embark on the nearly 16-year journey of co-writing a book with Gadson sharing his story.
Gadson and Schlachter’s book, “Finding Waypoints: A Warrior&#8217;s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose,” tells Gadson’s journey to recovery and forgiveness following his injury in 2007.
During a book talk and signing at the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton on Feb. 1, Gadson and Schlachter promoted their book which hit shelves Nov. 7.
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When Gadson isn’t busy giving motivational speeches, he channels his energy into his greatest passion: photography. This led him to become a long-time Workhouse Arts Foundation Board member who was instrumental in the founding of the Workhouse Military in the Arts Initiative.
“I&#8217;ve always had a passion for photography that I picked up when I graduated from high school… and anybody that&#8217;s been around me during my military career always knew that I had a camera. I literally had a camera with me when I was blown up by a roadside bomb in Iraq. That was sort of my trademark… they knew Colonel Gadson always had a camera,” Gadson said during the talk. “I was going through the loss of my legs and finding out that I had a broken arm, and for a while there, I didn&#8217;t know whether or not I was going to have full use of my right arm and hand. That was kind of the straw that broke the camel&#8217;s back…all I could think about was whether I was going to be able to pick up a camera.”
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Retired Col. Greg Gadson and Terese Schlachter sold copies of their book, “Finding Waypoints: A Warrior&#8217;s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose,” at Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton on Feb. 1.
By Cameron Delean, cdelean@insidenova.com
During the talk and signing event, visitors were given the opportunity to ask Gadson and Schlachter questions and purchase a copy of the book to be signed by both.
When Gadson was asked about what drove him to inspire others through his words, he said he felt that all he was doing was being honest about his life.
“I was just Greg, I was just a human and I just needed to stay humble, live my life that way. And that&#8217;s the way I try to live my life now. I fight to live that way. We can only live one day at a time,” Gadson said. “Nothing that I did yesterday gets anything done today. We all got to show up and live our best lives every single day. We get the gift of another day.”
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Double amputee takes command of Fort Belvoir