Combat to College Veteran rebounds from ‘low, low place’ to inspire others

Veteran Benjamin Congleton rebounds from ‘low, low place’ to attend EKU, inspire others
KY Forward
October 7, 2013

Like many of his some 1,300 fellow military veterans enrolled at Eastern, former Marine Benjamin Congleton suffers from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). His stems from two eight-month deployments in Iraq with the 3/8 India Co., often in close-quarters combat.

Upon returning to Kentucky, though, the Lexington native found himself “essentially homeless, couch-surfing,” relying on the generosity of friends for food and shelter for a couple of years.

“I was in a real low, low place,” he said.

When friends suggested he consider higher education, Congleton recoiled, initially thinking he “wasn’t smart enough.”

Subsequent conversations and therapy sessions with VA counselors, however, raised his confidence and hope, and he enrolled at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond in fall 2012.

After all, with the G.I. Bill covering much of his college expenses, what was there to lose, he said?

“They’re paying me to go to school, so it’s my job right now,” said Congleton, a sophomore wildlife management major and officer in the EKU VETS Club. Though still struggling occasionally with PTSD, he freely shares his story in an effort to help others, including a recent presentation at a VAMC conference in Lexington.

Several years and thousands of miles removed now from the battlefield, are there still bad days? Sure, he said.

“But I’m going to school with 1,300 other vets,” Congleton noted, “and if I’m having a bad day, these guys always have my back.”
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