Learning to live a struggle for Kingwood quad amputee

KINGWOOD, Texas - Learning to live without limbs has been a struggle for Katy Hayes, but the 43-year-old mother has made it work.

Hayes is the Texas mother of three who had her arms and legs amputated at Parkland Hospital in February last year after developing a rare flesh-eating strep infection. She had just given birth for the third time.
The Hayes put great effort into being an ordinary family. They go camping, and Mrs. Hayes even sings backup for husband Al's band, Soulshine. But, for most things, she relies on her husband and her two older children.
It's been tough on 8-year-old Jake.

"This is not easy for me," Mrs. Hayes said through tears. "I said, 'You have to watch your sister for me,' and he says, 'Mom, I don't want to; I'm tired of watching her and I just want to do my own thing.' And I said, 'I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do. This is the way it is and you've just got to buck up and do what I need you to do because I can't do it.'"

"I tried to explain that this is really hard for me because I'm a hands-on mom and I can't be," she continued. "So, I need him to come around to that and own it, and this is really hard for him because he's a kid."
She's convinced, though, she could be doing much more.

Because her condition qualifies her for disability, she is not eligible for Medicaid, which would cover her huge medical bills and rehabilitation.
"The government disability assistance qualifies you to a financial level where you don't qualify for government assistance," Mr. Hayes said. "That's what doesn't make any sense to me."

"It's tragedy heaped on tragedy," he said.
The Hayes have actually been advised to divorce, then Mrs. Hayes could qualify for government insurance. Repulsed by the idea, Mrs. Hayes is rehabbing herself at home. She's also training, with daily workouts that include core crunches for something even bigger.

"These arms are really wonderful, but they're really limited," she said. "That's why we're reaching out to doctors to get arm transplants because if I could have a hand, "a hand." One hand would change my life. I could brush my hair, brush my own teeth."
"What better reason to give someone hands than to hold their baby?" her husband said. "What better reason?"

If she can't hold her baby Arielle, for now, Mrs. Hayes said she is happy sharing a few steps with her.

"She runs," she said with a laugh. "She's showing me up."
Mrs. Hayes said it's not the lack of legs and arms that's holding her back, but the system. But, like most moms, she's doing what she has to, marching ahead one baby step at a time.

Texan heads Bin Laden raiders

The commander of the U.S. military unit responsible for killing elusive al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden — Vice Adm. William H. McRaven — is a San Antonio native and graduate of the University of Texas in Austin.

McRaven, 55, earned a bachelor's degree in journalism in 1977, although a campus dean said a computer listing didn't indicate whether the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps member had an interest in the print side of news coverage, broadcast or public relations.
A fellow ROTC member recalled McRaven as eager for military service.

"He was extremely focused on preparing for special forces details," said Curtis Raetz, of McKinney, who majored in engineering at UT, served in the Marine Corps and now works in private business.
'He had drive.'

Raetz, who graduated a year before McRaven, said the ROTC program included required courses such as naval science.

James Gruetzner, who served in the same Navy ROTC batallion as McRaven, told Cox Newspapers, "He had drive. He went on extraordinarily long runs to stay in shape. He was very dedicated."
McRaven's Navy biography states he attended the Naval Postgraduate School and was its first graduate in Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict. In 1995, he wrote a book called Spec Ops: Case Studies in Special Operations Warfare Theory and Practice.

McRaven became commander of the U.S. military's Joint Special Operations Command in 2008.
In that role, he reportedly led the planning and execution of bin Laden's death Sunday at the hand of Navy SEALs, an acronym that stands for Sea, Air and Land.