Raising Money for Wounded Soldier

The town of Hawthorne is rallying around one of its own, a local boy severely injured in Afghanistan. Pfc. Tim Hall is recovering from wounds suffered in a mortar attack last month. His hometown is letting him know he is not forgotten.

The flags fly year round here in the community that bills itself as “America’s Patriotic Home.” Tim Hall grew up here and it is not exaggeration to say most of the town remembers the little boy and the high school athlete and now the soldier who went off to war.

On June 9th, his base in Afghanistan came under mortar attack. The explosion literally ripped him in half. Both of his legs were amputated. He is now recovering at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington.

Facing a year or more of rehabilitation, then life in a wheelchair, Hawthorne seems determined to do whatever it can to support him and his family.

It began with a candlelight vigil days after he was wounded, and it hasn’t slowed since. The town, though hit hard by the recession, has opened its heart and its pocketbook, raising money through t-shirt sales, poker runs, and a raffle.

Saturday is Private Hall’s 21st birthday. It is also the day that Senator John Ensign will be presenting Hall with his Purple Heart.

Although the Army will provide Hall with ongoing medical care, his family will incur travel and other expenses supporting him.

Click for information on fundraiser

By: Ed Pearce