The Resilient Warrior: Joey Hahn's Journey From Foster Care To Frogman
Welcome back, loyal listeners to another episode of the Team Never Quit Podcast! Join us as Marcus and Melanie sit down for a conversation with wounded warrior and U.S. Navy SEAL, Joey Hahn.
Having lost his mother at 4 years of age to cervical cancer, his father was unable to care for him and his two siblings, and they were placed in foster care where they lived in dozens of homes across Texas until he graduated high school.
Despite the turmoil in his life, Joe graduated third in his high school class, earning multiple scholarships to attend Texas A&M University to pursue a Biomedical Science Degree. Joe was attending college when the 9/11 attacks occurred. He enlisted and spent 13 years in the United States Navy as a Special Operator First Class (SEAL). He deployed multiple times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and he then deployed three more times to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and to other undisclosed locations worldwide.
During two separate freefall workups for specific missions and deployments, Joey was catastrophically injured, shattering his left and right legs individually. Each injury required several surgeries and months of recovery time before he was able to return to his unit. After two more deployments, the extent of his injuries was discovered, requiring more surgeries. Unable to fully recover and having sustained several TBI’s from explosions and IED’s while overseas, Joseph Hahn was medically retired in 2017.
Joey currently subcontracts with various entities conducting training, personal security, and consulting while continuing to pursue his degree.
Tune in and be inspired. Until next time, NEVER QUIT!
Sponsors:
- Navyfederal.org
- Hellofresh.com/TNQFREE
- Fitbod.me/TNQ
- Shopify.com/TNQ
- Robinhood.com
Follow Us On Socials:
- https://www.instagram.com/beardedfrogman/
- https://www.instagram.com/team_neverquit/
Support Us On Patreon, and ask a question of the week!
- https://www.patreon.com/teamneverquit
In this episode you will hear:
• I can remember the day I got picked up [by CPS Foster Care]. I was in Kindergarten. (9:20)
• The foster home that took me in was my baseball coach. (18:02)
• I was constantly the new kid. My average stay at a home was 6 months. (20:38)
• The whole image of 9-11 and the invasion of Iraq was all over the TV. Stuff like that ate at me, especially being young, able-bodied, male Texan. I kept thinking to myself I need to do something now if I’m gonna do it because I’m physically capable now. (26:36)
• What attracted me to the whole community was combat diving. I loved water growing up. You couldn’t keep me out of a body of water: lake, pond, tank, trough. I was always trying to find a way to get wet. (32:02)
• Growing up as a child, I didn’t have any connections to anybody. I rarely saw my actual brother. There was no consistency as far as people in my life until the very end of my foster kid career. (73:51)
• I never really bonded with anybody until I went to BUDS. I can tell you everybody I went to BUDS with. They made a lifelong imprint on my life. (74:15)
• The only way to survive this situation [in battle] is to be with your brothers, and be ready for it, but accept that death is a possibility. (76:15)
• Instructors were telling us, “You’ve gotta be prepared to shoot somebody in the face. If you’re not mentally prepared for that, you’re in the wrong line of work. (78:28)
Having lost his mother at 4 years of age to cervical cancer, his father was unable to care for him and his two siblings, and they were placed in foster care where they lived in dozens of homes across Texas until he graduated high school.
Despite the turmoil in his life, Joe graduated third in his high school class, earning multiple scholarships to attend Texas A&M University to pursue a Biomedical Science Degree. Joe was attending college when the 9/11 attacks occurred. He enlisted and spent 13 years in the United States Navy as a Special Operator First Class (SEAL). He deployed multiple times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and he then deployed three more times to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and to other undisclosed locations worldwide.
During two separate freefall workups for specific missions and deployments, Joey was catastrophically injured, shattering his left and right legs individually. Each injury required several surgeries and months of recovery time before he was able to return to his unit. After two more deployments, the extent of his injuries was discovered, requiring more surgeries. Unable to fully recover and having sustained several TBI’s from explosions and IED’s while overseas, Joseph Hahn was medically retired in 2017.
Joey currently subcontracts with various entities conducting training, personal security, and consulting while continuing to pursue his degree.
Tune in and be inspired. Until next time, NEVER QUIT!
Sponsors:
- Navyfederal.org
- Hellofresh.com/TNQFREE
- Fitbod.me/TNQ
- Shopify.com/TNQ
- Robinhood.com
Follow Us On Socials:
- https://www.instagram.com/beardedfrogman/
- https://www.instagram.com/team_neverquit/
Support Us On Patreon, and ask a question of the week!
- https://www.patreon.com/teamneverquit
In this episode you will hear:
• I can remember the day I got picked up [by CPS Foster Care]. I was in Kindergarten. (9:20)
• The foster home that took me in was my baseball coach. (18:02)
• I was constantly the new kid. My average stay at a home was 6 months. (20:38)
• The whole image of 9-11 and the invasion of Iraq was all over the TV. Stuff like that ate at me, especially being young, able-bodied, male Texan. I kept thinking to myself I need to do something now if I’m gonna do it because I’m physically capable now. (26:36)
• What attracted me to the whole community was combat diving. I loved water growing up. You couldn’t keep me out of a body of water: lake, pond, tank, trough. I was always trying to find a way to get wet. (32:02)
• Growing up as a child, I didn’t have any connections to anybody. I rarely saw my actual brother. There was no consistency as far as people in my life until the very end of my foster kid career. (73:51)
• I never really bonded with anybody until I went to BUDS. I can tell you everybody I went to BUDS with. They made a lifelong imprint on my life. (74:15)
• The only way to survive this situation [in battle] is to be with your brothers, and be ready for it, but accept that death is a possibility. (76:15)
• Instructors were telling us, “You’ve gotta be prepared to shoot somebody in the face. If you’re not mentally prepared for that, you’re in the wrong line of work. (78:28)
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