Nick Bray, followed by Buddy, carries pet supplies and the crutches he used after surgery into his new apartment on Monday, June 1, 2026, in Brisbane, California.

“I came home on crutches because of the bone infection and could not walk for about six months. It was one of the worst times of my life. Being a soldier, not having civilian rights, and being injured, my treatment was delayed,” Bray notes. “I have as much PTSD from sitting in Fort Bliss, Texas, with a broken knee for three months as from going to Iraq. I felt like a POW in my own country.”