Veteran says without his wife and caregiver, he’d be dead

Veteran says without his wife and caregiver, he’d be dead
FOX6 Milwaukee
by Chip Brewster
March 23, 2014

MILWAUKEE (WITI) – A severe injury cannot only impact the victim, but also, their friends and family members. Tim Folkers was injured while serving in Iraq, and now, his wife has become his caregiver.

“Each day is a challenge,” Cara Folkers said.

For the last six years, Cara Folkers has taken care of herself, her children and her husband Tim — but that is not where their story begins.

Tim and Cara met in August of 2004, while he was on leave from the Army.

Three months later, Tim was stationed in Germany and Cara flew out for the holidays.

“We drove to Paris and he actually proposed under the Eiffel Tower and then we — he was actually supposed to redeploy pretty quickly so we went ahead and got married in December,” Cara Folkers said.

A few weeks later, Tim was sent on his second deployment to Iraq.

As a forward observer, he encountered dozens of improvised explosive devices — or IEDs. His camps were also constantly shelled by mortars. When he finally came home — all those blasts left a lasting effect.

“He was really quick to anger. He was kind of forgetful. He would isolate a lot. He would go to work and come home and go in the backyard and drink and just not want to be around the family,” Cara Folkers said.

“I’d just gotten back and I didn’t have time to process any of it so I’m just coming back thinking being this angry is normal,” Tim Folkers said.
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