Major Ed Pulido

MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER * KEYNOTE SPEAKER * AUTHOR

On 17 August 2004, Major Ed Pulido hit an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or roadside bomb while serving with the Coalition Military Assistance Training Team under the command of General David Petraeus.  Due to the extensive injuries to his left knee, doctors had to amputate his left leg on October 1, 2004.  For his heroism and valor on that August day, the President of the United States along with General David Petraeus awarded him the Bronze Star with Valor, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, and Joint Service Commendation and Achievement Medals.

Major Pulido’s story of courage and sacrifice has been featured in Time Magazine, PGA Magazine, Fox News, CNN and many national and local Oklahoma City television stations and print media.   Since his amputation, Major Pulido has been a staunch advocate for veterans with disabilities, specifically focusing on advocacy efforts to promote prosthetic technologies, peer visiting with fellow amputees at Brooke and Walter Reed Medical Centers, and raising awareness on the needs of veterans with PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injuries (T.B.I) on behalf of the Department of Defense and Veterans Administration "Real Warriors" National Campaign.

He has received countless awards including the prestigious Disabled American Veteran of the Year Award, HeartLine Festival of Hope Award for Suicide Prevention, the Hero’s award from the American Red Cross, the Reaching our City Award, OKC Thunder/Devon Energy Community Hero Award, and the Daughters of the American Revolution Veteran Patient Award.  Additionally, he has received the Valley Forge Freedom Foundation Award for national and state level service and the Tuskahoma Brown Miller Award for outstanding leadership.

On a personal note, Major Pulido during his time in the hospital experienced the inner darkness of depression, PTSD, and suicidal ideation that would cripple his positive spirit.  This inner darkness he describes as a “deep wounding of a soldier's spirit."  It was at that time that he understood that as a Warrior he could not walk alone in this journey.  In that moment, he asked for help from his God, Country, his family and the American people. The result of this intervention would put his life on the road to recovery.  It would also be the building block for his understanding the inner wounds of war and making sure that mental health is a focus of the Department of Defense and the VA.

Major Pulido has a degree in Military Science, Marketing, and Criminal Justice and a Master’s Degree in Logistics Management/Human Relations.  He attained the Rank of Major in his 19-year military career and on May 16, 2005, he was medically retired from the United States Army.

Major Pulido is also Founder of Warrior Nation, a movement focused on the rights of liberty, freedom and patriotism with an autobiography entitled Warrior for Freedom: Challenge, Triumph and Change, the Major Ed Pulido Story.

He is the Founder and CEO of John Daly - Major Ed Heart of a Lion Foundation which provides mental, physical and wellness support to our nation’s children and Americas Veterans. Additionally, he was the Sr. VP and is a current Ambassador for the Folds of Honor Foundation, a Veteran’s charity which provides the spouses and children of the fallen and wounded educational scholarships.

A national and global spokesperson for Acadia HealthCare, Pulido also represents the Department of Defense and VA Real Warriors National Campaign and he is on the State Board of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services with a mission to address the mental health needs of returning service members, Veterans and their families