NEWS
Jacksonville's "Hometown Hero"!
NewsJax4 follows Brett Parks' journey to the 2016 Invictus Games
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A Jacksonville Navy veteran who was nearly killed after he was shot in 2012, is proving his strength. Last week, Brett Parks competed in Prince Harry's international Invictus Games in Orlando despite losing part of his leg in the shooting.
More than 400 competitors from 13 nations took part in the sporting event for wounded, injured and sick service members. Teammates call Parks a fierce competitor as he competed on the sitting volleyball team and swimming races for Team USA.
Parks' wife Susan and two kids (with one more is on the way) watched as Team USA's sitting volleyball team beat the Netherlands (25-10, 25-17) in the semi-finals at the HP Field House inside Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports park on May 10.... For more
"Miracle Man" Brett Parks Survives Against The Odds After Robber Shoots Him
Jacksonville, FL- A patient with an abdominal gunshot wound is wheeled into the UF Health Jacksonville Trauma Center.
He is moaning and in pain, and James Dennis, MD, immediately knows he will need to operate.
Fortunately, Dennis is not only a trauma surgeon, but also the hospital’s chief of vascular surgery. The vascular injury he is about to discover will be a challenge even for him to mend.
Just outside, the patient’s wife, Susan Parks, searches....to continue
ONE OF US:
Brett Parks considers himself a 'Miracle Man' after surviving a near fatal gunshot
On the evening of Oct. 17, 2012, Brett Parks, who was training to become a flight engineer at Jacksonville Naval Air Station, and working as a freelance personal trainer, was waiting for a new client outside a fitness center near the St. Johns Town Center.... To continue
Invictus Games' Parks a hero away from battleground
Wounded warriors aren't all wounded in combat overseas.
Sometimes a different kind of war awaits them at home.
When former Navy airman Brett Parks heard the cries for help, he instinctively acted as if he were on duty in a foreign land.
"We're on 24-7," said Parks, here at Disney World competing in the Invictus Games. "I have a responsibility to do that. I feel like if we all took that mindset and stood up for the little guy, this world would be a much greater place."
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