When the government doesn’t take care of its own
For more than three decades, service members, their families and civilian staff were unknowingly exposed to toxic water contaminated with carcinogens and jet fuel at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Studies conducted by the CDC found volatile organic compounds in the base’s drinking and bathing water and declared the exposure a public health hazard.
The Camp Lejeune Justice Act will allow victims to file suit against the U.S. government for this tragedy.
But many of those exposed remain unaware of the connection between serious, often lethal, health problems and time spent at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987.
I enlisted in the US Navy out of high school, reporting to boot camp and “A” School before being stationed at the base dental clinic at Camp Lejeune. I reported aboard in July 1973. Karen and I married in September 1973 and started our story at Lejeune.
We found out Karen was pregnant in the summer of 1974. During her prenatal visits, everything appeared fine. When Karen entered the labor room of the Naval Hospital’s Maternity unit, the obstetrician told us that our baby had several severe birth defects, including hydrocephalus and spina bifida. She would not survive birth.
I don’t remember much of the next few days. I signed her death certificate and released her body for transfer to our home in Pennsylvania for burial.
Except for her tiny footprints on the death certificate, I never saw our baby. I will never forget that pain.
Our lives went on, I left active duty. I graduated college and dental school, establishing a private practice and raising our family. I remained in uniform, serving our country as a Navy Reservist.
Fast forward to the summer of 2012. Our home phone rang, I answered. It was Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta searching for the Thomas Patton who lived in North Carolina from 1975-1976.
This is how Karen and I learned about the contamination from the toxic chemicals at Camp Lejeune. The CDC found us after all these years. Unfortunately, most stationed at Camp Lejeune were never contacted and many remain unaware of their exposure to the toxic water.
Karen and I always believed we had done something wrong related to our daughter’s stillbirth, only to find out 37 years later that she was the victim of toxic chemicals. The multiple miscarriages we suffered between our surviving children were not our fault either.
Karen was diagnosed with breast cancer in the fall of 2012 — yet another problem caused by the Lejeune water contamination. We now had to relive our painful past while dealing with her breast cancer.
Fast forward again to 2022. Cancer-free for a decade, Karen’s breast cancer not only returned, it metastasized to several lymph nodes and her spine. We are presently being treated with chemotherapeutic agents. Karen confirmed through genetic testing that she does not have any genetic predisposition or genetic markers for breast cancer.
So, where did this come from? Camp Lejeune water?
We have five children, and six grandchildren. Our oldest son, born at Lejeune, has two sons, both of whom have a blood clotting disorder. We have no history of blood dyscrasia on either side of our families. What horrible health problem will raise its ugly head next due to the Camp Lejeune water contamination?
Several years ago, our local Veterans Affairs officer asked me to attend a round table discussion held by our local VA Hospital Interim Director. The meeting was attended by only a handful of our older community veterans. Instead of discussing the topics on the agenda, the Director decided to simply ask each veteran their general thoughts. The discussion revolved around services being cut and why they could not keep their housekeeping services.
I asked only one question: “What are you doing to raise awareness and give veterans access to care for the diseases associated with the poisoning of our service members at Camp Lejeune?”
“What are you talking about? I was born at Lejeune. I’ve never heard of any water problem,” an older vet said.
An assistant responded by passing out unhelpful fact sheets to the vets in attendance without any further discussion.
This is an ongoing problem in addressing Camp Lejeune’s toxic water exposure. We must get the word out and educate those affected by the water. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act provides the opportunity for compensation deserved by so many who served their country yet have suffered for so many years. But justice can only be served if those affected know they can seek it.