Yesterday afternoon, I had an NPR driveway moment. A driveway moment is when, upon reaching your destination, the story you’re listening to is too compelling or interesting to abandon, so you sit, car idling, toddler squirming, waiting for the conclusion.

Part of an in-depth series co-reported by NPR and ProPublica, the story followed a veteran injured in ways not expected. (It is at least worth mentioning that the Tomahawk missiles fired into Libya this week cost approximately 33 times the annual federal funding for NPR.)

Brock Savelkoul is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, a Purple Heart winner who survived a rocket attack while on a base in Baghdad. The explosion led to a concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), two of the signature injuries of the last decade of war. While the injuries weren’t fatal and left no visible scars, the aftereffects still almost left Savelkoul dead.

Medically discharged from the military and suffering from deep depression, he loaded six of his father’s guns and headed out in his pickup truck. After threatening patrons in a local convenience store, he led the police on a chase that escalated to 105 miles an hour. After he ran out of fuel, Brock and the police stayed locked in a standoff, guns drawn, for over two hours. The troubled vet screamed at the police. “Go ahead, shoot me!” The standoff continued until Brock could be persuaded to put down his weapons, and he was tased into submission.

TBI and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are the hidden injuries borne by many of the service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The causes and cures of these conditions are still poorly understood, but what is known are the effects. Like Brock Savelkoul, many veterans find difficulty re-acclimating to the civilian world. Even finding a job after the military can be difficult. Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), a group founded specifically for those returning from America’s most recent wars, reports that unemployment among young veterans was at over 15 percent in January, far higher than the national average. Indeed, IAVA’s 2011 Policy Agenda focuses heavily on finding ways to help employ “the next greatest generation.”

The military is struggling to change its culture around these invisible casualties, from awarding Purple Hearts for concussions to ensuring that adequate counseling is available to returning vets. However, this culture shift needs to be matched by society writ large.

This past NFL season, much was made of concussions, their long-term effects on players and what the league could do to prevent them. With the change in seasons, the focus has shifted to the NHL. Scarcely a week has gone by without a widely reported news story on a concussed star. Less present in the national conversation are victims like Brock, who had far less say in the matter that led to his injury and far fewer personal resources to draw from when the job was done.

Although the attention brought by professional sports can help educate the public on the deleterious effects of head injuries, it is a bit disheartening to see the voluminous amounts of ink spilled bemoaning the treatment of men playing a game while the condition of our injured warriors garners barely a mention. It is only with increased attention that our veterans will receive the treatment they need and deserve.

There are innovative solutions out there. Paws and Stripes is a nonprofit that trains dogs to act as companions to veterans suffering from TBI and PTSD, at no cost to the vet. Some veterans are pursing adventure sports as a means of fighting
injury-related depression. The VA is exploring a range of treatments, as science struggles to catch up with a growing problem.

As it stands, however, the VA and small nonprofits alone can’t hope to solve the problems recent vets face. As the ProPublica article says, “Savelkoul's troubles in finding treatment were not unusual. The majority of VA patients are older and served in the Vietnam War. The VA has struggled to figure out how best to adapt to the newer, younger veterans now seeking mental health counseling and therapy.”

Howard County is in the process of starting up a Veterans’ Commission, which is an excellent step toward ensuring the veterans among us receive the care to which they’re entitled. However, the case of Brock Savelkoul is a reminder that the vet might not know, exactly, what it is they need, or even what the underlying problems are. Even as the military struggles to deal with problems that, perhaps, went unrecognized and unaddressed for too long, we too must be ready to recognize the signs of TBI and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

We, as a community, should be ready to help reassimilate those who we, as a country, sent to wars around the world. Local businesses can be shown that veterans can become valuable members of their teams, and be given ways to connect with the veterans community. Local forums can give a voice to veterans groups like IAVA, ensuring that their message reaches intended recipients.

Whatever the contribution, each of us has a responsibility to our combat vets. The first step in accepting that responsibility is becoming educated on the issues facing them, even if it means sitting, for a few extra minutes, in an idling car.