LOWELL, Mass. — Sgt. Nick Lavery returned to UMass Lowell Thursday for the first time since he graduated in 2007. He was there to be honored ahead of Veterans Day.
So much has changed for the Green Beret in the last decade, but his commitment to his country remains steadfast.
“I remain humble, I remain hungry, and I will always be the hardest working person in the room; period,” St. Lavery said.
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The six-foot, five inch decorated Green Beret has wanted to serve his country since childhood.
“I gave an oath to this nation, to protect these people and I still want to adhere to that and live up to my end of the bargain,” St. Lavery explained.
After graduating from UMass, Sgt. Lavery enlisted in the special forces.
On his second tour in 2013, his group was ambushed in the Afghan mountains.
“I was hit by a barrage of machine gun fire from about 10-15 feet away in both legs. Most of the damage was done to my right leg,” he said.
The bullets severed his femoral artery and shattered his femur.
“Surviving that kind of injury is not something, that according to modern medicine, is likely,” Sgt. Lavery said.
He lost his leg, but he survived and he never lost his courage or determination.
“I'm going to go back was almost immediately my mission,” Sgt. Lavery said.
After almost 40 surgeries and two years of rehab and evaluations, Lavery deployed with his former unit on another tour in 2015.
He was the first special forces amputee to return to military combat.
It was a near impossible feat for most people, but not for Lavery.
“I strap [my leg] on and I go to work. And I will continue to do so until I am no longer able,” Sgt. Lavery said.
He will be deployed again in January.