Cpl Steven Bultje

New Braunfels, TX

Mission Accomplished on June 8, 2018

Marine Corporal Steven Bultje joined the military shortly after high school, inspired by a sense of duty to his country.

In 2011, Cpl Bultje deployed on his second tour to Afghanistan serving as an Infantry Assaultman with Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines. On March 5, 2011, while returning from a patrol in Sangin, Afghanistan, an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated beneath Cpl Bultje. The blast shattered his right foot and ankle, and caused severe damage to his right knee.

Stateside, he was treated at the Naval Medical Center Portsmouth in Virginia, where he met his wife, Angela, a Navy Corpsman. After two years of surgeries, doctors amputated his right foot.

Steven and Angela are parents to Kyle and Avery. Steven earned a Bachelor of Science in Urban Planning. Angela graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration to complement her experience as a Hospital Corpsman while in the Navy.

In their previous non-adapted home, Steven’s wheelchair couldn’t fit through narrow doorways or hallways, making even simple tasks—like getting up in the middle of the night to care for his children—difficult. Leaving the house was also a challenge because of the stairs. Now, in his single-level, specially adapted custom HFOT home with widened doorways, these obstacles are gone. “I am relieved to have a home that is completely accessible,” he says.

Originally from Ohio, Steven chose to build his home in Texas to have better access to healthcare and a strong community of Veterans.

Steven extends his deepest gratitude to HFOT donors and supporters. “It is truly humbling to see just how much the American people support the troops,” he says.

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