Finding Waypoints: A Warrior’s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose

Emmy-winning television producer and documentarian Schlachter first met retired Army Col. Gregory Gadson in 2007 while she was working for the Pentagon Channel, which produced programming for American armed forces. At the time, Gadson a West Point graduate, was recovering at Walter Reed Medical Center from a double-leg amputation due to wounds suffered in Iraq. Several months earlier, an improvised explosive device destroyed the Humvee in which Gadson was riding; it wounded several soldiers. For this memoir, Schlachter accompanied Gadson as he made strides in the use of his prosthetic legs, fought for and kept his commission, transformed into a successful motivational speaker, and starred in a Hollywood movie. These achievements are in keeping with his life philosophy. Throughout his military career he used “waypoints,” or individual goals he needed to accomplish before he reached his larger goal. This story shows how one person dealt with extreme adversity, never lost hope, and forged a new path forward for his life.