When I tracked down the five guys we rode with in the Light Armored Vehicle during the first weeks of the Iraq war back in 2003, most were doing well. Most, but not all. Three are still in the Marine Corps, two are now civilians and only one of them doesn’t have a job. He’s also the only one to declare bankruptcy, lose a home and worst of all, lose a child.

Jason King was the driver of our LAV-25. He was the quiet one, avoiding our camera glare for the most part, but offering up a smile whenever we talked. I always thought of him as a nice kid who told me his dream was becoming a police officer in his hometown of LaPorte, Indiana. That dream evaporated thanks in part to what his wife insists is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

He hasn’t been officially diagnosed with PTSD, but he’s been through more tough times in the past five years than most people may ever see in a lifetime. He was forced to resign while still a police cadet after losing his temper with another recruit, and tiring of his next job as a corrections officer joined the army but was chaptered out for failure to cope. While he was being treated in the hospital on base, his wife was juggling troubles of her own at home, trying to handle two young daughters. She says she left the girls alone together in the bathtub for a few minutes, and when she went back, one of them had choked and died.

The Kings admitted to New York State officials they were negligent, losing their two-year-old to foster care. When Jason’s wife Amy had another baby girl, the state immediately took her away too.

On the day we met, Amy was leaving the hospital after a procedure to insure she has no more children. I followed the Kings to their rented house in a snow-covered neighborhood in Watertown. Their home was spotless, filled with pictures of their daughters. A bedroom upstairs is decorated and waiting for the girl’s return. The couple have earned visitation rights and are working with the State to regain full custody, something they hope will happen in the next six months.

Jason thinks he has a job lined up as a driver with a trucking company, but that will require him to move back to Indiana and Amy may not be able to join him for a while. She’s looking for part-time work but so far hasn’t had much luck.

The couple is proud, but definitely needs help. They can be reached via e-mail at jasonk0313@yahoo.com