OFF THE WIRE
North County Times
MARK WALKER mlwalker@nctimes.com
Injured Marine Cpl. Josue Barron and Debbie Salazar are receiving a free fantasy wedding package from Fallbrook's Los Willows Wedding Estate and several vendors. The Jan. 15 event is something the couple dreamed about after the courthouse ceremony they had before Barron deployed in 2010 to Afghanistan, where he lost a leg and an eye to a roadside bomb. Photo courtesy of Shadowcatcher Imagery..
Fifteen months after losing a leg and eye to a roadside bomb in Afghanistan, Marine Cpl. Josue Barron will walk down the aisle and marry the woman he met a few months before heading to war.
Barron and Debbie Salazar plan to wed before dozens of friends and family Jan. 15 in a fantasy wedding package valued at close to $50,000 ---- provided free by Fallbrook's Los Willows Private Wedding and Event Estate and several vendors.
"It means a lot," Salazar said last week. "It's especially touching, given everything that's happened."
Barron, a Los Angeles native, was a rifleman with Camp Pendleton's 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, which had 25 of its men killed in Afghanistan last year.
More than 140 were wounded during the regiment's seven-month assignment in the deadly Sangin district of Helmand province. Like Barron, many of the injured became amputees.
Barron was hurt in late October 2010, just days into his first combat deployment, when he went to help a fellow Marine who had fallen in a canal while his unit was on foot patrol. That's when the bomb ---- a type the military calls an improvised explosive device, or IED ---- detonated.
"As I was pulling him (the Marine) up, the IED blew up," Barron, 22, said. "He lost both of his legs and a couple of fingers, and I lost my left leg and my left eye."
Both Marines were flown to a hospital at Camp Leatherneck and then on to Germany and Bethesda Naval Medical Center, where Barron spent about a month before being transferred in December 2010 to Naval Medical Center San Diego.
He and Salazar had married in a quick courthouse ceremony before Barron deployed, but had vowed to family and friends that they would have a more traditional wedding after he returned from Afghanistan.
"Our honeymoon was at the hospital in Bethesda," Salazar said.
When the owners of Los Willows, retired Marine Col. Al Ransom and his wife, Cathie, learned of the couple's story, they and several of their regular vendors decided to provide the dream wedding.
"There isn't enough we can do for these young troops that put their lives on the line," Cathie Ransom said. "What is truly inspiring is how these magnificent wounded warriors have stood and faced their injuries."
In September, Barron and Lt. Cameron West, a platoon leader from the same battalion who also lost a leg in a roadside bombing, arranged a lunch at Los Willows with Salazar.
"She said it would be amazing if they could get married there," West recalled of that gathering.
A few minutes later, Barron presented Salazar with flowers and proposed again. She readily accepted and learned the wedding would take place at Los Willows.
West ---- whose path to recovery was featured in the North County Times in February 2011 ---- was one of the first to greet Barron when he arrived at Naval Medical Center San Diego.
The two didn't know each other, but Barron had served in the platoon led by one of West's best friends, 1st Lt. Robert Kelly, who was killed in fighting in Afghanistan in November 2010.
"I went and saw him as soon as I could get in the wheelchair and get to his room," West recalled. "He was pretty banged up, and we went through a lot of rehab together, and that kindled a pretty good friendship. He's an awesome guy."
In October, the two competed as hand cyclists in the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. In a couple of weeks, West will serve as Barron's best man.
Like West, Barron continues to receive treatment for his injuries as an outpatient.
"I'm doing pretty good," Barron said. "I'm really looking forward to the wedding, and we're going to have a lot of other wounded warriors there as well as some of our therapists."
Salazar said the wedding, food, drink, music, photography and other amenities ---- provided by Los Willows, Ranch Event caterers, Pro Sound DJ's, Shadowcatcher Imagery, Blooming Grace Floral, Black Tie Productions, Marqui Artistry and My Picture Booth ---- are far beyond what she had envisioned.
"I wasn't expecting this at all," Salazar said. "It's even more special, because for a while we didn't know if he would be able to overcome his depression, which he has, and if we would live a normal life again."
There's something else she has long wanted, Salazar said.
"Having him see me in a white wedding dress has always been my dream."
Read more: http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/fallbrook/region-fantasy-wedding-set-for-injured-marine-and-his-bride/article_1ba0c337-29fd-5682-8bf3-ed38a5fa659e.html#ixzz1iKG5k2Th
Barron and Debbie Salazar plan to wed before dozens of friends and family Jan. 15 in a fantasy wedding package valued at close to $50,000 ---- provided free by Fallbrook's Los Willows Private Wedding and Event Estate and several vendors.
"It means a lot," Salazar said last week. "It's especially touching, given everything that's happened."
Barron, a Los Angeles native, was a rifleman with Camp Pendleton's 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, which had 25 of its men killed in Afghanistan last year.
More than 140 were wounded during the regiment's seven-month assignment in the deadly Sangin district of Helmand province. Like Barron, many of the injured became amputees.
Barron was hurt in late October 2010, just days into his first combat deployment, when he went to help a fellow Marine who had fallen in a canal while his unit was on foot patrol. That's when the bomb ---- a type the military calls an improvised explosive device, or IED ---- detonated.
"As I was pulling him (the Marine) up, the IED blew up," Barron, 22, said. "He lost both of his legs and a couple of fingers, and I lost my left leg and my left eye."
Both Marines were flown to a hospital at Camp Leatherneck and then on to Germany and Bethesda Naval Medical Center, where Barron spent about a month before being transferred in December 2010 to Naval Medical Center San Diego.
He and Salazar had married in a quick courthouse ceremony before Barron deployed, but had vowed to family and friends that they would have a more traditional wedding after he returned from Afghanistan.
"Our honeymoon was at the hospital in Bethesda," Salazar said.
When the owners of Los Willows, retired Marine Col. Al Ransom and his wife, Cathie, learned of the couple's story, they and several of their regular vendors decided to provide the dream wedding.
"There isn't enough we can do for these young troops that put their lives on the line," Cathie Ransom said. "What is truly inspiring is how these magnificent wounded warriors have stood and faced their injuries."
In September, Barron and Lt. Cameron West, a platoon leader from the same battalion who also lost a leg in a roadside bombing, arranged a lunch at Los Willows with Salazar.
"She said it would be amazing if they could get married there," West recalled of that gathering.
A few minutes later, Barron presented Salazar with flowers and proposed again. She readily accepted and learned the wedding would take place at Los Willows.
West ---- whose path to recovery was featured in the North County Times in February 2011 ---- was one of the first to greet Barron when he arrived at Naval Medical Center San Diego.
The two didn't know each other, but Barron had served in the platoon led by one of West's best friends, 1st Lt. Robert Kelly, who was killed in fighting in Afghanistan in November 2010.
"I went and saw him as soon as I could get in the wheelchair and get to his room," West recalled. "He was pretty banged up, and we went through a lot of rehab together, and that kindled a pretty good friendship. He's an awesome guy."
In October, the two competed as hand cyclists in the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. In a couple of weeks, West will serve as Barron's best man.
Like West, Barron continues to receive treatment for his injuries as an outpatient.
"I'm doing pretty good," Barron said. "I'm really looking forward to the wedding, and we're going to have a lot of other wounded warriors there as well as some of our therapists."
Salazar said the wedding, food, drink, music, photography and other amenities ---- provided by Los Willows, Ranch Event caterers, Pro Sound DJ's, Shadowcatcher Imagery, Blooming Grace Floral, Black Tie Productions, Marqui Artistry and My Picture Booth ---- are far beyond what she had envisioned.
"I wasn't expecting this at all," Salazar said. "It's even more special, because for a while we didn't know if he would be able to overcome his depression, which he has, and if we would live a normal life again."
There's something else she has long wanted, Salazar said.
"Having him see me in a white wedding dress has always been my dream."
Read more: http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/fallbrook/region-fantasy-wedding-set-for-injured-marine-and-his-bride/article_1ba0c337-29fd-5682-8bf3-ed38a5fa659e.html#ixzz1iKG5k2Th