Malibu Kiwanis Club member John Paola presented Cpl. Josue Barron with a medical mobility all-terrain wheelchair on Sunday at the Malibu High School Christmas Tree Lot. Barron lost his left leg and left eye when he stepped on an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan.
He said that at a young age he was part of the L.A. gang scene and that enlisting in the military transformed his life. With a desire to push boundaries and stereotypes of disabled people, Barron helped start a basketball team, the San Diego Wolfpack. The team, made up of all branches of the military, is the only wheelchair basketball team in the United States made up of active duty and veteran service members. Barron, whose first child will be born in February, is truly grateful for the gift of the wheelchair. He looks forward to being mobile and holding his baby girl on his lap.