Army Staff Sergeant Daniel Casara of San Diego, CA, is an Army Veteran with 15 years ofservice in the Military.  While deployed to Iraq in 2005, his M113 rolled over an anti-tank mine.  The explosion flipped the tank, killing two soldiers and injuring four, including Daniel.  Dan suffered bilateral fractures of his right tibia and fibula and shattered his left tibia, shattered his heel and both ankles, and dislocated his right hip.  To date, Dan has undergone 24 separate surgeries to repair his injuries.  He continues to rehab at the Medical Center San Diego (Balboa Hospital).  Dan wears a IDEO, Intrepit Dynamic Exoskeleton Orthosis to help him get around which also reduces his pain.

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Dan continues to give back through his association with the Military Order of the Purple Heart and over one dozen Military non-profit organizations.  He graduated from the Golf Academy of America in December 2016 and is pursuing a degree in Criminal Justice at Miramar College in San Diego.  Dan had his picture painted by President George Bush in his Portraits of Courage series.

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Dan, his wife Barbara, son Denali, and his mother Elaine took their vacation courtesy of Vacations for Warriors to New York City in August 2017.  Dan and his family wanted to visit Ground Zero as well as to take in the sights of Manhattan. The Casara family had a fun-filled trip, visited all the sights, and attended the play “Chicago” on Broadway. 

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Dan is also running for a seat in the US Congress.*