Alfredo De los Santos (Freddie) is a Retired Army Staff Sergeant from Hopewell Junction NY. He graduated from City College of New York with a Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design. Motivated by 9/11, Freddie decided to serve his country and joined the Army. He served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. On October 20, 2008, while serving South West of FOB Price in Central Helmand Providence Afghanistan with the special operations command, Freddie was wounded in action when his vehicle came under RPG fire. As a result, he lost his right leg above the knee, as well as other injuries, such as PTSD, TBI, hearing loss, and dental trauma. He was hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for two years, where he had to go through numerous surgeries.
While Freddie was at Walter Reed hospital, he was introduced to different athletic programs to help during his recovery process. Subsequently, he decided to continue handcycling full time. Handcycling is important to Freddie because it helped him rebuild strength and endurance while he improved his quality of life. Cycling has greatly helped him recover physically, mentally and socially. It’s the most rewarding experience being able to compete in two Paralympic Games despite his disabilities. Besides cycling, Freddie is also an artist by trade, so he decided to use painting as a part of his recovery process to deal with the mental traumas.
Freddie currently lives in upstate New York with his wife Jeanette De Los Santos, an Elementary School teacher, their daughters Joshley De Los Santos, a Registered nurse, and their son Jesse De Los Santos, attending college majoring in Merchandise Marketing. Freddie’s family has been his rock throughout his recovery process since he was wounded. Their emotional support has been his biggest blessing and motivation to continue moving forward with his life.
