Iraq vet with PTSD finds new life at sea

Mass. Iraq vet with PTSD finds new life at sea
By Jay Lindsay
Associated Press
February 25, 2012

BOSTON—The danger he faced in Iraq was constant, and that's reflected in how Erick Valiente remembers the M-16 rifle he took on patrol.

"That was my right hand, pretty much," said the former Marine infantryman. "I don't think I ever let go of that weapon."

The rifle is gone, but Valiente still carries burdens from his service that complicate his civilian life, including post-traumatic stress disorder and a restlessness that made finding work difficult.

That is, until a friend who works for U.S. Sen. John Kerry mentioned an opening for a swordfish boat crewman.

This month, Valiente returned from his first trip, a three-week stint 700 miles east of the Bahamas.

In an interview from Florida, where the Iron Lady docked for a few days, Valiente described grueling work days and the perils of landing a thrashing, big game fish. The challenges of the job are exactly why boat owner Tim Malley went to Kerry's office looking for references to military veterans seeking work.

Malley knew Iraq and Afghanistan veterans were struggling to find jobs, and figured they'd have the needed endurance and discipline.

"My motives were both selfish, in that I wanted a good reliable, strong crew member, but also to do some good for some people that had done so much for us, put their lives on the line for us," said Malley, chief executive of Boston Sword & Tuna.
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