Rebuilding Warriors

Ed started his military career at the young age of 18. He attended basic training and AIT at FT. Sill Oklahoma. Upon completion of basic training, his first duty assignment was with B Batry 2^nd /320^th FA 101st Airborne Division, FT. Campbell, Kentucky.

While assigned to the division, he completed numerous training schools, most notably Jungle Survival / Jungle Training school and Air Assault school. While assigned to the division, he was also sent to and won, numerous soldier of the month boards, Divarty Soldier of the Month, along with The 101st Airborne Soldier of the Month. A notable deployment while stationed with the 101st was Egypt for Operation Bright Star. During this deployment he was able to work the the Egyptian government and helped train members of all armed forces in Egypt. He was also deployed to Camp Lejune for a multi-forces joint training operation.

From there he was stationed with the 8^th Infantry Division in Baumbholder, Germany. He was one of the first to be awarded the Small Unit Distinguished Leadership Award which was implemented for up and rising junior NCOs. His duty while assigned to Alpha Btry, 2/29^th field artillery, was that of Section Chief. SGT Abrahamson was the only SGT E-5 Section Chief in the battalion. The position of Section Chief is normally reserved for a Staff SGT E-5 but due to SGT Abrahamson's dedication and level of professionalism he was granted the position.

From there he went to FT Benning, Georgia, where he completed Airborne School. He was then assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division. At this point, he was deployed to Saudi Arabia where he participated in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. As part of XVIII Airborne Corp. He and the division were to be the blocking force of retreating Iraqi forces trying to flee back to Baghdad. While conducting this operation along the "highway of death", Ed was witness to uncountable numbers of casualties. He was also witness to massive numbers of human losses and the atrocity of man. They were in a combat zone for four months. It wasn't long after this they headed back to Saudi Arabia and then to the states, taking with him memories that would trigger and haunt him to this day.

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Ed was honorably discharged in 1992 and moved back to his home state of Minnesota where he went back to school to earn a degree in Law Enforcement. He was initially hired by The Minneapolis, Minnesota Police Department, and was there for a short period of time before he was hired by The South St Paul Police Department. During his career in South St. Paul, Minnesota, he joined the Dakota County SWAT Team, where he was a negotiator for about four years and then moved into an operator's spot on the Dakota County SWAT Team for the next 3-1/2 years. He has received two Life Saving Awards. One of these awards was for pulling an unconscious driver from his crashed and burning vehicle. The most recent was for breaking down the front and bedroom doors of a multi-plex home. He had to forcibly remove a psychotic subject who was trying to burn her house down while tenants were present in the other units.

Today, Ed lives in Minnesota with his wife and kids. He currently is dealing with issues from the war he managed to bury for so many years. Part of his recovery is spending time with his family along with ongoing therapy. He knows now more than ever that everyday is a gift. Sometimes the strongest of men and women are those who smile through the pain, cry behind closed doors, and fight battles nobody knows about. If you ask his wife she will tell you he is her hero. The bravest thing he ever did was to go on with his life when all he wanted to do was to end it.

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Jeff Anderson
CEO/Founder, Rebuilding Warriors