“I actually remember everything that day. I put my backpack on the ground and then there was an explosion. I got thrown on the right side of my body. I rolled over and saw that my right arm and right leg were gone. My left leg was dangling, barely connected. And my left arm was blown out pretty good at the wrist. My medic started to work on me but I told him don’t worry about it. I just figured I was going to die because I had seen guys die from a lot less. But he decided to work on me anyway and he got me bandaged up enough to get on a helicopter.”
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Why Listen:
Travis is one of only five veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive his quadruple amputee injuries. His life and story since then are inspiring, including becoming a NYT Best Selling author, starting the Travis Mills Foundation to help other “re-calibrated warriors”, to being the subject of an upcoming major motion picture release. He lives his motto: never give up, never quit.
About Travis:
Travis Mills is the President of the Travis Mills Group, President of the Travis Mills Foundation, and a NYT Best Selling Author of the book, Tough as They Come. On April 10, 2012, while a Staff Sergeant in the Army, Travis was on a mission during his third tour of duty in Afghanistan. He set his backpack down – and a buried IED exploded on impact. When he woke up four days later on his 25th birthday, he had lost all four limbs. Travis is one of only five veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive his quadruple amputee injuries. His journey since then has been one of hard work, inspiration, and helping other combat-injured vets. Last summer, SSG Mills and the Travis Mills Foundation opened a fully accessible facility for recalibrated warriors and their families. For the second year, the retreat offers – at no cost – adaptive sports, recreation, spa services, chef-prepared meals, and whatever else the families need to rest, relax, and reconnect. Travis is also an in-demand motivational speaker and the co-owner of a lodge and marina. His story is set to be the subject of a major motion picture which is expected to be directed by Sylvester Stallone, who will also co-star with Adam Driver. He is also the subject of the award-winning documentary, Travis: A Soldier’s Story.
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Selected Resources:
https://www.cnn.com/2014/05/26/us/travis-mills-rowe/index.html
https://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/39553/travis-mills-army-veteran/ -- VA podcast
Transcript & Time Stamps:
2:20
Joining me today from Augusta, Maine is Travis Mills. Travis Mills is the President of the Travis Mills Group, President of the Travis Mills Foundation, and a NYT Best Selling Author of the book, Tough as They Come. On April 10, 2012, while a Staff Sergeant in the Army, Travis was on a mission during his third tour of duty in Afghanistan. He set his backpack down – and a buried IED exploded on impact. When he woke up four days later on his 25th birthday, he had lost all four limbs. Travis is one of only five veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive his quadruple amputee injuries.
His journey since then has been one of hard work, inspiration, and helping other combat-injured vets. Last summer, SSG Mills and the Travis Mills Foundation opened a fully accessible facility for recalibrated warriors and their families. For the second year, the retreat offers – at no cost – adaptive sports, recreation, spa services, chef-prepared meals, and whatever else the families need to rest, relax, and reconnect. Travis is also an in-demand motivational speaker and the co-owner of a lodge and marina. His story is set to be the subject of a major motion picture which is expected to be directed by Sylvester Stallone, who will also co-star with Adam Driver. He is also the subject of the award-winning documentary, Travis: A Soldier’s Story.
4:10
Can you take us through the injury you incurred on April 10th and the ensuing nine months?
I actually remember everything that day. I put my backpack on the ground. I got thrown on the right side of my body. I rolled over and saw that my right arm and right leg were gone. My left leg was dangling, barely connected. And my left arm was blown out pretty good at the wrist. My medic started to work on me but I told him don’t worry about it. I just figured I was going to die because I had seen guys die from a lot less. But he decided to work on me anyway and he got me bandaged up enough to get on a helicopter. In the operating room, they knocked me out and worked on my for 14 hours. They kept filling me up with blood I was losing. Four days later, I woke up on my birthday to find out what had happened. I realized life would be different from now on.
I was talking to my wife a few days later and told her to go and not worry about me. We had a six month old at the time. But she told me we were going to get through it together. So I started my recovery and worked to get a little bit stronger each day. Two months later, I walked for the first time.
The only thing I really cared about was to recover and get better for my family. I didn’t want to be a burden and wanted to be able to do as many things independently as I could.
7:40
How did you remain so positive in the face of so much adversity?
The idea of the recalibrated warrior came about because I didn’t like the idea of being called a wounded warrior. I didn’t like that look of pity that I got from people. I preferred “recalibrated” because I had to reset some things but now I’m good to go. My family was also key - my wife and daughter were there by my side the whole time. At the end of the day, I can’t change my situation but I can choose my attitude.
9:20
How did you get the idea to start the Travis Mills Foundation?
It started with putting together care packages because I felt like I had a good idea of things guys would want during their deployments. Then I learned how to downhill mountain bike, raft, and kayak. I was worried about what I was able to do with my family but then I found these activities. So I wanted to get other recalibrated warriors involved in these activities. We brought them out to different places with their families. And it just kind of grew from there. This year, we hosted 140 families. Families come up at no cost to them. So it’s been a wonderful experience and I’m very grateful that I’ve had to opportunity to do this. All of the money we raise goes directly to programming. I don’t take any of it and neither does the board of directors.
11:20
What does a typical day look like for you?
It’s always different. Last week, I started my week in New York and then flew to Dallas. Then I went to Detroit and from there, California. I got back two days ago and had an event for our foundation last night. I’m also the part owner of an insurance company so I’m working on that as well.
12:10
What is it like being a motivational speaker?
I recently spoke at a uniform company and through that they found out about my foundation and they wanted to help. So they bought Christmas presents for veterans that were affected by Hurricane Harvey. So it ends up being everyone working together to do good and help each other out.
13:30
What motivated you to write the book Tough as They Come?
People liked my demeanor and attitude and hearing my story. So that was why I wanted to write the book. For me the experience of writing was awesome. I had a collaborative author who is great at what he does. I would talk to him on the phone and he would transcribe what I was telling him. He would send me a draft and I would make any necessary changes. He would re-do it and then we would keep going with that process. It was a fun experience and I was able to tell my story.
14:50
Do you feel like you’ve always been a positive person?
Yes I feel like I’ve always been like this - joking and lighthearted. It wasn’t always and easy transition for me after what happened. There were times when I couldn’t look in the mirror. But through my recovery and meeting people in similar situations, I regained that confidence. And I wanted to go out and be a voice for people that are going through a struggle.
15:55
How do you feel about your story becoming a major motion picture?
If they tell the right story, I’m all about it. I believe it will be covered in the right way. If it gets turned into a movie, I think it will be really heartwarming. My wife and I have a great love story. My father-in-law moved in with us as a I was recovering. I didn’t know him that well at that time but we built a really great friendship. I think people will really be able to relate to different parts of the story.
17:00
Where does your motivation to “pay it forward” come from?
In my time of need, there were so many people that came forward to help my wife and my family. They didn’t have to do this but they wanted to. So my wife and I want to give that back. So the foundation is important for us. The foundation is not for my benefit - we take no money from it. It’s about doing the right thing for injured veterans.
18:10
Do you have any advice for people on how to approach the transition out of the military?
You need to be well-informed. You need to understand that you won’t immediately have healthcare and a regular paycheck. You also need to find out what jobs are out there that you would be a good fit for you and will allow you to get paid. So it’s just about understanding what success will look like for you and how you can attain that.
19:20
What advice would you offered to someone that is going through a struggle in their life?
Number one - don’t dwell on the past. You can’t change the past. The second is that you can’t always change a situation but you can change your attitude. Every morning I wake up with no arms or legs and that’s just my situation. It’s up to me to decide on my attitude. My slogan is “never give up, never quit” and that’s what I firmly believe.
20:50
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
Check out the Travis Mills Foundation website. You can also find our documentary on Netflix. Thirteen months again my wife and I had our son and named him after the two medics that saved me.
I also think life is about perspective. I go forward for the people that never came home to their families. I’m grateful to be here because many of my friends did not.