More than two decades after being paralyzed overseas, Army Corporal Jeffery Williams is taking steps toward independence — literally — with the help of high-tech equipment and sheer determination.

Williams was injured in 2004 when his convoy in Iraq was hit by an improvised explosive device(IED). He was one of only three men to survive the attack, with two of his friends losing their lives. The explosion left him paralyzed from the chest down after a piece of shrapnel tore through his collarbone and severed his spinal cord.

"2025 back to 2004 - I could never see myself where I'm at now," Williams said. "I'm thinkin' like I can't do anything for myself, I gotta live with someone taking care of me, so where I'm at right now, I think I live a pretty independent life. I live alone, I'm able

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