Imagine the thoughts running through a young man's head as he lies hidden on the side of a ditch for nearly 90 minutes, slowly dying. That was the scenario earlier this summer for 16-year-old Battle Ground High School sophomore Justin Carey.

While he was waiting for the school bus the morning of June 10, Justin was struck by a car and thrown 150 feet into the nearby bushes. He would not be here today were it not for a tow truck driver that heard his faint pleas for help and called 911.

With his life still in front of him, Justin found himself sitting in a hospital being told that if he didn't have his leg removed, he would die.

He chose life.

Constantly involved in school and a member of the Battle Ground Junior Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps, Justin always had dreams of joining the military.

And during a Sept. 7 ceremony, the Washington Air National Guard made Justin Carey an honorary enlistee.

"For as long as Justin can remember, he has had a dream to join the Air Force and serve as a flight simulation software engineer," said Chief Master Sgt. Trisha Almond, WAANG command chief of the Western Air Defense Sector and the event's emcee. "He wanted to be part of our team, wear the blue and fight for the freedoms we as military members fight for every day."

Justin was sworn in Saturday by Col. Bryan Witeof, State Headquarters, WAANG, along with Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Bret Daugherty and retired Col. Brian Brown, commander of the AFJROTC at Battle Ground High School.

"Justin's will to live brought us to where we are today and is the reason we are making him an honorary member of the Washington Air National Guard, (assigned to headquarters)," Almond said. "In this capacity, Justin and his family will be invited to join us for special events ... because as we always say, "we never leave a wingman behind. And Justin, you are now a ‘wingman.'"

Although the military currently won't allow paraplegics to fully enlist, Justin will still be very much involved with the military, and he hopes that the rules now in place will change and allow him to serve.

After his honorary enlistment, Justin attended the 194th Air Force Unit Picnic and Family Day Sept. 8, and he will also attend the upcoming Washington National Guard Militia Ball Sept. 14 at the Hilton Seattle Airport.

The courage of an individual to let no injury affect his heart, mind and goals is something that reigns familiar for those brave, dedicated servicemembers that protect the freedoms of this nation every day.

"As a retired combat veteran, I know what it takes to be a fighter," Brown said. "I worked alongside many in battle, and Justin's will to live shows his strong ‘fighter' character."

Justin's courage and will to live is something to be truly astounded by, and thanks in part to that will, Justin will now always proudly stand among the members of the Washington National Guard.