I’ve known my good friend Brian Kolfage for many years, and there is a side of Brian that most people who have only read headlines about him have probably never seen.
Brian is a triple-amputee Air Force veteran who nearly died serving our country in Iraq. He lost both of his legs and his right hand after a rocket exploded just feet away from him at Balad Air Base in 2004.
Now, after everything Brian himself has been through, he is trying to change the life of another disabled man halfway around the world.
Brian recently connected with a man in Africa who was born with severely deformed limbs and has spent his entire life unable to walk.
The man shares his story on Instagram under @hardlifefoundation, and when Brian saw his situation, he wanted to help.
Brian is now working to get him a wheelchair at no cost to him.
For most of us, a wheelchair might simply look like a piece of medical equipment.
For this man, it could mean freedom.
It could mean being able to move around without someone carrying him.
It could mean getting outside, interacting with his community, and having an independence he has never experienced before.
And Brian understands exactly how important that independence can be.
Brian Had to Learn How to Live All Over Again
When Brian was wounded in Iraq, his life changed in a matter of seconds.
He went from being a young Airman serving his country to waking up without both legs and his right hand.
Most people cannot even imagine what comes after something like that.
Brian had to learn how to walk again on prosthetic legs. He had to learn new ways of doing everyday things most of us perform without even thinking about them.
He had to rebuild his life.
I’ve watched Brian do things over the years that many able-bodied people would have difficulty doing.
His disability didn’t stop him from becoming a husband and father. It didn’t stop him from working, getting massive border wall projects built, or pursuing things people told him couldn’t be done.
And it hasn’t stopped him from helping other disabled people and being a motivational force.
This Isn’t The First Time Brian Has Done Something Like This
Years ago, Brian traveled to Montreal to meet a young Ukrainian boy named Mykola Nyzhnykovskyi.
Mykola had suffered horrific injuries in a grenade explosion.
He lost both of his legs and his right arm.
Sound familiar?
Brian could sit down with that young man and connect with him in a way that almost nobody else on Earth could.
Brian could show him his prosthetics.
He could show him what life could still look like.
He could demonstrate, simply by being there, that losing three limbs didn’t mean his dreams were over.
Sometimes the person best equipped to reach someone who is suffering is someone who has already traveled down that road.
And now Brian is doing it again.
This time, it’s a man in Africa who has never known what it’s like to simply stand up and walk somewhere.
Brian can’t change how he was born.
But he can help change what happens next.
A Wheelchair Can Change a Life
Think about how many times you move throughout an ordinary day.
You get out of bed.
You walk into another room.
You go outside.
You get into a vehicle.
You go to a store.
You visit friends.
Most of us never give any of it a second thought.
Now imagine having to rely on another human being every single time you wanted to move from one place to another.
That’s why this wheelchair matters.
This isn’t about giving someone a luxury.
It’s about giving someone mobility, dignity, and independence.
And after losing three limbs himself, Brian understands that better than almost anybody.
Brian Could Use Our Help Too
Brian has also been through an incredibly difficult period in his own life.
Following the politically motivated We Build the Wall case, which stemmed from him getting privately funded border wall sections built, Brian was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $2,877,414 in restitution.
That’s nearly $3 million.
Whatever people may think about the case, Brian is a triple-amputee combat-wounded veteran, a husband and father, who also sought to help secure our border and keep Americans safe.
Now he is trying to rebuild his own life while carrying an enormous financial burden—and, remarkably, he’s still looking for ways to help somebody else.
That says something about a person
I’ve worked alongside Brian. I’ve traveled with him. I’ve photographed and filmed the projects we worked on together. I’ve seen him when the cameras weren’t rolling, and there was no audience around. This is who he is.
That’s why I’m helping him now.
If you would like to help Brian and his family as he rebuilds his life, please consider making a donation to his fundraiser.
And please share his story.
Brian lost three limbs serving this country. He has lived through injuries most people couldn’t imagine, prison, public controversy, and an enormous financial judgment.
Yet here he is, looking across the world at another disabled man and asking:
How can I help him?
That’s Brian Kolfage.
And hopefully, very soon, a man in Africa who has spent his entire life struggling to move will have a wheelchair—and a little more freedom—because somebody who understood his struggle decided to help.
Please donate to Brian’s fundraiser and share this story. Every donation and every share helps. 🇺🇸