Army veteran David Kawika Lau describes surviving a bombing in Afghanistan and finding help later in life with Semper Fi & America’s Fund when he needed it the most.
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Warning: Images and descriptions of war are included in this story, discretion is advised.
First Coast News highlights the Stories of Service of America’s bravest men and women. This week, the spotlight is on an Army veteran who was brave enough to ask for help.
“My grandfather immigrated to the United States and was a farmer in Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked,” said David Kawika Lau. “He was so moved by the bravery of the soldiers that he saw that day, that he made a decree, ‘As long as the Lau family lived in the United States, every generation has to produce one child for the military.'”
“It was never a question in my mind, at 17 and a half I went to basic training,” Lau told First Coast News.
“I remember everything, it is the most vivid memory I have in my mind,” said Lau. “It was market day in Maymana, Afghanistan, northern province of Faryab, sapphire blue skies. I had literally just said, ‘This day could not be going any better,’ when a 13-year-old male with 25 pounds of hybrid explosives wrapped around his torso, covered in ball bearings, walked into our patrol and detonated.”
“There was a massive civilian loss of life that day, but we lost three of America’s bravest sons,” Lau said.
“I was the closest one to that bomb that lived, my right leg was almost blown off at my hip, my left leg was almost blown off at the knee,” Lau told First Coast News. “My hand was completely shredded. It took them about a year to rebuild it, common bomb blast damage, severe brain damage.”
“The doctor told me, ‘Recovery for injuries like these, will be for the rest of your life, it will be every day of your life,” Lau said.
Years after surviving the bombing, while living in St. Simons Island, Lau’s minivan was totaled in a car accident.
“I was just thinking, man, what are we going to do?” Lau said. “And Semper Fi & America’s Fund stepped in.”
“From my experience, the people that probably need the most help, are the least likely to ask for it,” said Lau. “They’re here to serve, not to be served. The person who I was working with, Teresa Emmerson, allowed me to take assistance in a way that preserved my pride and dignity. Semper Fi & America’s Fund exists for people who have laid it all on the line.”
With the help of Semper Fi & America’s Fund, Lau, his wife and their four kids have a new vehicle.
More information about Semper Fi & America’s Fund can be found on their website here.
In December 2023, The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation and Parsons Xtreme Golf (PXG) partnered with Semper Fi & America’s Fund in the ‘Double Down Campaign’ for a 12th year in a row. The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation and PXG matched every donation made to the fund, dollar-for-dollar up to $10 million. More information about those donations can be viewed here.
If you have a story of a military hero that you would like First Coast News to profile, send an email to storiesofservice@firstcoastnews.com.
