'Caregiving Has Been an Incredible Gift'

Many veterans struggle to cope with PTSD and then turn angry or violent toward their loved ones. But after Andre Morrow started taking care of his father, Sam, he was able to forgive him

- JOHNNY DODD

Shortly before Andre Morrow's mom, Odette, died in 2013, he promised her that he'd do everything he could to allow his dad, Sam, to remain in the couple's longtime home in San Jose. But four years later, when Andre and his wife, Leimomi, paid a surprise visit, they were horrified to find the woman hired to care for Sam verbally abusing the Korean and Vietnam War veteran. "I fired her on the spot," Andre says. Hours later he made a decision that changed his life-and also helped him heal his relationship with the man who, he says, brutalized him as a child. Andre left his 20-year career as a city parks supervisor to move into his father's house to care for him. "I basically do everything for him," says Andre, 65. "I feed him, bathe him, shave him, give him his meds, wash his clothes, cook his dinner, even take his dog to the vet."