At the start of the first Gulf War, I joined the U.S. Army to become an aviator. Although I was never actually deployed during the war itself, I had the opportunity to fly countless real-life missions as a crash-rescue and medevac helicopter pilot. In 2005, I was given a diagnosis of ALS. These days, I am confined to a wheelchair, can only eat through a feeding tube, speak through a speech device, and require a mechanical ventilator to breathe.  My wife and three wonderful children have always been there by my side and are the reason I still wake up and view each day as a gift.