WEBVTT - Episode 2: The Poster Child 0:00:15.356 --> 0:00:22.596 Pushkin. Hey, it's Jake. I hope you enjoyed our season 0:00:22.796 --> 0:00:26.356 The Truth about Sarah. We'll be having a live event 0:00:26.596 --> 0:00:29.916 later this year. It's going to be a conversation between 0:00:29.996 --> 0:00:33.876 me and my co host Jess McHugh, and we want 0:00:33.916 --> 0:00:37.396 to hear from you too. What questions do you have 0:00:37.556 --> 0:00:41.516 for us about this season? Send your questions to deep 0:00:41.636 --> 0:00:45.636 Cover at Pushkin dot fm. That's deep Cover All one 0:00:45.716 --> 0:00:49.836 word at Pushkin dot fm and stay tuned for more 0:00:49.876 --> 0:00:51.356 details on this event. 0:00:56.636 --> 0:01:00.996 Previously on deep Cover. I liked her. I liked her 0:01:01.036 --> 0:01:04.956 a lot. She worked really hard and she was really humble. 0:01:06.796 --> 0:01:10.876 Sarah says that she's going to have to have her 0:01:10.916 --> 0:01:17.516 leg amputated, and I was blown away. She tells me that, like, 0:01:18.716 --> 0:01:22.396 she just got diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. 0:01:24.316 --> 0:01:27.196 Could you help me understand why? It says that you're 0:01:27.196 --> 0:01:31.116 a corporal here and she's like, I was sexually assaulted 0:01:31.196 --> 0:01:37.236 on ship by the commanding officer. The DoD ID number 0:01:38.556 --> 0:01:43.116 for this D two fourteen belongs to a corporal so 0:01:43.276 --> 0:01:47.756 and so, and it's a guy. Then fifty percent of 0:01:47.796 --> 0:01:50.676 this document is altered. 0:02:00.116 --> 0:02:03.956 Long before Sarah ever traveled out to Montana, long before 0:02:03.956 --> 0:02:07.436 she met dex Or Tom or Natalie. She had a 0:02:07.476 --> 0:02:10.956 life in Rhode Island. That's where she grew up, where 0:02:10.956 --> 0:02:13.156 she went to high school, where she had made a 0:02:13.196 --> 0:02:17.636 home for herself. Rhode Island is tiny. It's the small 0:02:17.796 --> 0:02:20.876 estate in the nation. People like to say, in Rhode Island, 0:02:21.276 --> 0:02:24.876 you can't go anywhere without bumping into someone you know. Now, 0:02:24.916 --> 0:02:27.476 in such a small place, it seems like it'd be 0:02:27.516 --> 0:02:31.676 hard for anyone to keep secrets. But that didn't seem 0:02:31.676 --> 0:02:32.916 to stop Sarah Kavanaugh. 0:02:34.036 --> 0:02:38.716 Sarah passed herself off as a veteran, specifically a former 0:02:38.836 --> 0:02:43.636 US Marine who'd served in Iraq and Afghanistan, who'd been injured, 0:02:44.276 --> 0:02:49.156 a decorated war hero. But none of this was true. 0:02:50.676 --> 0:02:54.516 Was a story she told about herself, the sprawling lie 0:02:54.676 --> 0:02:58.436 she lived for six whole years. You might think that 0:02:58.516 --> 0:03:03.196 to pull this off, she played safe, avoid attention, like 0:03:03.716 --> 0:03:06.476 not advertise the lie, because that'd be a great way 0:03:06.516 --> 0:03:12.836 to get caught. Seems logical, right, Instead she did this. 0:03:13.396 --> 0:03:16.676 Rhode Island is celebrating a national Purple Heart Day, and 0:03:16.716 --> 0:03:19.716 there will be a heartfelt tribute for the brave women 0:03:19.836 --> 0:03:23.316 and men who have been awarded this special medal. Here 0:03:23.356 --> 0:03:25.356 to tell us all about it is a purple Heart 0:03:25.436 --> 0:03:28.636 veteran Sarah Kavanaugh. Sarah, if you can tell us a 0:03:28.676 --> 0:03:32.116 little bit about yourself, and you were awarded a purple Heart. 0:03:32.436 --> 0:03:34.516 Yes, so, I served in the Marine Corps for about 0:03:34.516 --> 0:03:36.836 eleven years. That was given at purple Heart for action 0:03:36.916 --> 0:03:40.756 to Afghanistan. This is Sarah giving an interview on the 0:03:40.756 --> 0:03:44.916 local news. She's speaking about the state's new Purple Heart Trail, 0:03:45.476 --> 0:03:48.476 a network of roads dedicated to veterans who were injured 0:03:48.596 --> 0:03:51.556 or killed in service. Yeah, it really is an honor 0:03:51.596 --> 0:03:52.236 to be a part of this. 0:03:52.356 --> 0:03:54.476 Being able to recognize it and be the voice for 0:03:54.516 --> 0:03:56.756 other Purple Heart veterans who may not be comfortable is 0:03:56.796 --> 0:03:57.476 really an honor. 0:03:58.716 --> 0:04:01.916 Just a few days after this interview aired, Sarah attended 0:04:01.956 --> 0:04:05.956 a dedication ceremony for the new Purple Heart Trail. I've 0:04:05.996 --> 0:04:08.716 seen a photo of this event. Sarah wore a Marine 0:04:08.756 --> 0:04:14.276 Corps uniform, pressed neat, immaculate metals gleaming. A sharp white 0:04:14.396 --> 0:04:17.916 cap framed her face, her eyes kind of hidden under 0:04:17.956 --> 0:04:21.516 the visor. She stood alongside the governor and made a 0:04:21.556 --> 0:04:26.636 speech about patriotism and sacrifice. Sarah told the assembled crowd, 0:04:27.436 --> 0:04:31.236 no one earns a purple heart alone. I earned mine 0:04:31.356 --> 0:04:36.276 amongst eleven other marines. She added, I have long been 0:04:36.356 --> 0:04:39.356 one of those veterans, the ones who wished to fly 0:04:39.476 --> 0:04:43.396 under the radar, who merely did what was asked. 0:04:46.076 --> 0:04:50.796 So yes, Sarah really did this. She stood next to 0:04:50.796 --> 0:04:53.676 the governor and talked about the meaning of the purple heart, 0:04:54.476 --> 0:04:58.356 a purple heart by the way that she bought online. 0:04:58.596 --> 0:05:02.116 Part of me wonders, if you're Sarah, why agree to 0:05:02.196 --> 0:05:05.916 do this? Because Sarah grew up in Rhode Island and 0:05:05.956 --> 0:05:09.836 still had family there, classmates from high school, people who 0:05:09.916 --> 0:05:13.676 knew full well that she was no war hero. And 0:05:13.716 --> 0:05:16.236 if any of them had seen her making this speech 0:05:16.996 --> 0:05:19.556 or watched her on the local news, they could have 0:05:19.596 --> 0:05:24.356 started asking questions, and Sarah's lies could have unraveled so easily. 0:05:25.396 --> 0:05:30.236 But Sarah's lies survived, thrived, in fact, even as she 0:05:30.276 --> 0:05:35.116 took risks, reckless risks, risks that seemed destined to backfire, 0:05:35.756 --> 0:05:40.676 especially within the tiny context of Rhode Island. But Sarah, 0:05:40.756 --> 0:05:44.676 she navigated well in small spaces, and as the walls 0:05:44.716 --> 0:06:07.316 closed in, they just keep getting smaller. I'm Jake Halburn 0:06:07.916 --> 0:06:12.076 and I'm Jess Mchughe, and this is Deep Cover Season 0:06:12.156 --> 0:06:31.636 six The Truth About Sarah, Episode two, The Poster Child. 0:06:37.996 --> 0:06:42.236 Sarah's lies didn't just happen overnight, but slowly, over the 0:06:42.236 --> 0:06:46.556 course of many years, she gradually won people over, won 0:06:46.596 --> 0:06:51.236 their trust, won their admiration, and far as we can tell, 0:06:51.796 --> 0:06:55.596 all of this really started back in twenty sixteen with 0:06:56.116 --> 0:06:56.676 this guy. 0:06:57.516 --> 0:07:01.396 So people may forget my name, but though, oh hey, 0:07:01.396 --> 0:07:05.116 do you know Dave. Dave, Oh, the guy with a 0:07:05.116 --> 0:07:08.156 handlebar mustache. Oh yeah, I know him. 0:07:08.716 --> 0:07:12.836 That's Dave Ainslie. He's an Army vet served over twenty years, 0:07:13.196 --> 0:07:15.956 including time in Iraq, where he earned a purple heart 0:07:16.236 --> 0:07:20.356 and a bronze star. In the army, Dave always had 0:07:20.356 --> 0:07:23.836 to keep a close shave, so when he finally got out, 0:07:23.916 --> 0:07:25.916 he returned home to Rhode Island. 0:07:25.876 --> 0:07:29.596 And I was like, I'm gonna try this facial hair thing. 0:07:30.116 --> 0:07:33.796 So I had everything from mutton chops to a goatee 0:07:33.836 --> 0:07:36.516 to well, let's try a handlebar mustache. 0:07:37.276 --> 0:07:40.436 And that look worked for him. Came like his calling card, 0:07:40.436 --> 0:07:43.596 as he put it, so that if you lived anywhere 0:07:43.636 --> 0:07:46.556 near his town in Rhode Island, you knew that Dave 0:07:46.916 --> 0:07:49.836 the guy with the handlebar mustache. He was the dude 0:07:49.836 --> 0:07:53.036 in charge. Of the local VFW post one point fifty two. 0:07:54.396 --> 0:07:57.716 DFW, by the way, stands for Veterans of Foreign Wars. 0:07:58.116 --> 0:08:00.476 It's kind of like a club for veterans where they 0:08:00.516 --> 0:08:04.716 can kick back, swap stories, and support each other. Dave 0:08:04.836 --> 0:08:07.956 was the commander of this post and his ongoing goal 0:08:08.156 --> 0:08:11.436 was to modernize the place. He says, when he first 0:08:11.556 --> 0:08:14.556 arrived in twenty ten, the vibe was kind of like 0:08:14.716 --> 0:08:18.316 what you might expect, as he put it, smokey bar, 0:08:18.836 --> 0:08:22.156 bunch of old guys. Dave loved those old guys, but 0:08:22.556 --> 0:08:25.316 he also wanted to open up the doors create an 0:08:25.436 --> 0:08:29.396 environment where any and all veterans would feel welcome, especially 0:08:29.476 --> 0:08:32.916 the younger generation. So he upped their game on social media, 0:08:33.796 --> 0:08:36.916 focused on doing community service, and he set the tone 0:08:36.956 --> 0:08:42.196 with his welcoming personality. Then in twenty sixteen, he meets 0:08:42.236 --> 0:08:45.396 Sarah Kavanaugh and apparently she was struggling. 0:08:46.636 --> 0:08:51.596 She explained to me that she just got out of 0:08:51.716 --> 0:08:55.636 the Marine Corps and she needed help with some car 0:08:55.676 --> 0:09:02.196 payments because she was waiting for VA disability to kick in. 0:09:02.196 --> 0:09:04.916 In other words, Sarah said there'd been some kind of 0:09:04.956 --> 0:09:07.996 delay that she was supposed to be getting financial support 0:09:08.036 --> 0:09:11.796 from the VA. The Department of Veterans Affairs, but there 0:09:11.836 --> 0:09:15.956 was a hold up. Indeed, he understood this kind of thing. 0:09:17.476 --> 0:09:22.396 So we've all been there before. The VA is great organization, 0:09:22.476 --> 0:09:27.516 but not always perfect. We wanted to help her. 0:09:28.356 --> 0:09:30.596 So many of the charities that help veterans in the 0:09:30.676 --> 0:09:34.236 US operate just like this. They try to compensate for 0:09:34.276 --> 0:09:38.636 all the government's inefficiencies and shortcomings, and they do this 0:09:38.796 --> 0:09:42.316 by jumping in and helping veterans right away when they 0:09:42.356 --> 0:09:45.916 need it most. And here was Dave trying to do 0:09:46.116 --> 0:09:46.796 exactly that. 0:09:47.716 --> 0:09:49.636 So I said, hey, we're getting ready for the Veterans 0:09:49.676 --> 0:09:51.516 State Parade. Meet us over there. 0:09:52.196 --> 0:09:55.756 They were gathering in a parking lot when Sarah shows 0:09:55.836 --> 0:10:00.276 up to join them. It's all pretty informal except for 0:10:00.476 --> 0:10:01.676 one bit of paperwork. 0:10:02.676 --> 0:10:04.876 I said, I need to verify that you're a veteran. 0:10:04.956 --> 0:10:07.716 So she showed me what every service member gets when 0:10:07.716 --> 0:10:10.476 they leave the service. A two fourteen. 0:10:11.636 --> 0:10:16.796 Add two fourteen. It's actually a very important document in 0:10:16.836 --> 0:10:19.676 the story. You may recall us talking about it in 0:10:19.716 --> 0:10:24.596 the last episode. It's the official military discharge paper explaining 0:10:24.716 --> 0:10:28.476 how and when someone left the service, and it's what 0:10:28.636 --> 0:10:32.276 proves that Sarah is apparently a veteran. 0:10:33.036 --> 0:10:35.756 I looked at it. I said, yep, okay, you're a veteran. 0:10:35.796 --> 0:10:38.436 Thank you very much. And I was actually excited to 0:10:38.436 --> 0:10:44.596 have her because here is a younger veteran and she 0:10:44.796 --> 0:10:47.436 seemed very genuine and she's like, Okay, I'm going to, 0:10:47.916 --> 0:10:50.076 you know, be a part of this organization. I'm going 0:10:50.116 --> 0:10:51.036 to be a part of this now. 0:10:52.556 --> 0:10:55.996 So right there on the spot in the parking lot, 0:10:56.156 --> 0:10:59.276 with Sarah standing there, Dave calls for a vote. 0:11:00.276 --> 0:11:03.516 It was a voice vote. Okay, here's this veteran. Here's 0:11:03.556 --> 0:11:07.836 her proof. She wants to become a member of our post. 0:11:07.996 --> 0:11:11.956 She needs help. Here's story. Can we give her the 0:11:11.996 --> 0:11:14.276 eight hundred and whatever dollars it was that she needed 0:11:15.636 --> 0:11:18.716 all in Favorsay, I eyes have it. Okay, hey, we're 0:11:18.756 --> 0:11:20.076 in the parade. You want to march with us? 0:11:20.076 --> 0:11:20.396 Sure? 0:11:21.876 --> 0:11:25.156 And like that, Sarah was marching in the annual Veterans 0:11:25.196 --> 0:11:29.796 Day parade. I've seen a video of this parade from 0:11:29.836 --> 0:11:33.196 a different year, but the mood is timeless. People are 0:11:33.236 --> 0:11:36.236 waving flags, the members of a local high school band 0:11:36.276 --> 0:11:40.236 are playing their drums and trombones. Veterans are walking down 0:11:40.276 --> 0:11:43.636 West Main Street together waving the Boy Scouts are there too, 0:11:43.876 --> 0:11:47.476 marching past the package store and the antique dealer and 0:11:47.556 --> 0:11:53.076 the quilting shop. It's classic America and right there in 0:11:53.116 --> 0:11:56.716 the middle of it all was Sarah Kavanaugh, the newest 0:11:56.756 --> 0:12:00.596 member of Post one P fifty two. 0:12:08.276 --> 0:12:10.916 As far as Dave concerned, the day was a win. 0:12:10.996 --> 0:12:14.516 Win got to help vet need and he also got 0:12:14.516 --> 0:12:17.996 a new member, a fresh face, and a woman too. 0:12:18.836 --> 0:12:21.636 I was excited to have a female veteran be part 0:12:21.676 --> 0:12:27.756 of our organization because that helps open us our organization 0:12:27.956 --> 0:12:29.516 up to another demographic. 0:12:29.956 --> 0:12:32.636 And it wasn't just that Sarah was a woman. She 0:12:32.716 --> 0:12:35.956 had a great energy about her. She seemed to embody 0:12:36.076 --> 0:12:39.676 the new, younger VFW that Dave wanted to build. 0:12:41.036 --> 0:12:48.796 She was the post A child because she was pretty blonde. Um, 0:12:49.676 --> 0:12:55.876 she was openly a lesbian, and again that is an 0:12:55.916 --> 0:13:01.796 aspect of people who have served that doesn't get represented 0:13:01.836 --> 0:13:04.796 well you know what I mean. So she was the 0:13:04.916 --> 0:13:09.676 post A child for lack of a better term. 0:13:10.036 --> 0:13:12.876 Not to mention, she was also a wounded combat veteran. 0:13:14.796 --> 0:13:17.596 This didn't come out right away or in a super 0:13:17.636 --> 0:13:21.556 public manner. She would make references to her injuries and 0:13:21.676 --> 0:13:25.356 later to the medals that she'd won. Eventually, she showed 0:13:25.436 --> 0:13:29.796 up to VFW meetings with purple heart license plates, and 0:13:29.836 --> 0:13:31.636 she seemed remarkably resilient. 0:13:33.556 --> 0:13:37.876 I liked her story that she was a survivor and 0:13:37.916 --> 0:13:41.796 that she served as a beacon of hope for other 0:13:41.876 --> 0:13:44.116 veterans who could have been in that same place. 0:13:45.556 --> 0:13:49.356 When folks actually talked to Sarah, she was relatable, even 0:13:49.396 --> 0:13:52.116 to the other veterans, the old school guys. 0:13:53.356 --> 0:13:55.396 She could talk to these other veterans and the other 0:13:55.516 --> 0:13:58.516 veterans were like, Okay, yeah, I'm going to put aside 0:13:58.516 --> 0:14:01.316 all these other aspects that I may not agree with 0:14:01.836 --> 0:14:05.556 about her sexual preference, but I'm going to recognize that 0:14:05.956 --> 0:14:09.236 she served. 0:14:08.316 --> 0:14:11.916 A few months after she joined the VFW, Sarah got 0:14:11.956 --> 0:14:15.956 engaged to a woman named Nicole. Nicole was originally from 0:14:15.956 --> 0:14:20.836 New Mexico. She was very sporty, an avid hiker, played softball, 0:14:21.156 --> 0:14:23.956 love the beach. The two of them seemed like a 0:14:23.996 --> 0:14:29.156 great match, and of course Sarah's veteran buddy's rally to celebrate. 0:14:30.156 --> 0:14:33.436 I think she asked me to organize the bachelorette party. 0:14:33.436 --> 0:14:35.396 To be honest with you, sometimes I can be a 0:14:35.396 --> 0:14:39.036 little gregarious, so it goes with the yeah, it goes 0:14:39.036 --> 0:14:42.356 with a handle all mustache. So what we did was 0:14:42.836 --> 0:14:48.076 we first met at a German American club up in Batucket, 0:14:48.116 --> 0:14:49.156 had a couple of beers there. 0:14:49.796 --> 0:14:52.956 Dave invited a bunch of VFW members, including an old 0:14:52.996 --> 0:14:56.796 Vietnam Vet. They all enjoyed a few bruskies together. 0:14:57.676 --> 0:15:00.076 And then we went down to Providence. We got a 0:15:00.116 --> 0:15:06.396 hotel suite, we did some shots, and then we all 0:15:06.396 --> 0:15:08.956 put TWU two's on just because you attitude two on. 0:15:09.196 --> 0:15:10.916 Yes I did, because you're just sort of you're a 0:15:10.956 --> 0:15:11.436 big dude. 0:15:11.556 --> 0:15:13.196 Yes I am. 0:15:13.276 --> 0:15:16.836 And for the record, these were rainbow colored two twos. 0:15:17.796 --> 0:15:21.476 Once they were all two tuned up, it was picture time. 0:15:22.836 --> 0:15:26.636 So outside of the hotel, we all posed like army men, 0:15:26.676 --> 0:15:28.556 you know, like one person's on their knees and one 0:15:28.596 --> 0:15:31.036 person's like pointing and everything else. So we all posed 0:15:31.076 --> 0:15:36.196 like army green men. Then we went to a holl 0:15:36.276 --> 0:15:39.236 oft the Moon type bar where the dueling pianos and 0:15:39.276 --> 0:15:42.396 we were all singing songs. And then we all went 0:15:42.756 --> 0:15:43.916 uh to a gay bar. 0:15:44.876 --> 0:15:50.356 And there it was a modern day VFW celebrating in 0:15:50.396 --> 0:15:55.356 two twos. It was the sort of VFW that Dave 0:15:55.476 --> 0:15:58.796 had envisioned and it seemed that Sarah had played a 0:15:58.876 --> 0:16:02.076 key role in making it happen. And the real proof 0:16:02.116 --> 0:16:06.556 of this, the crowning proof, was that a few years later, 0:16:06.716 --> 0:16:10.236 when Dave stepped down as commander of the post, it 0:16:10.396 --> 0:16:14.236 was Sarah who took over. She became the next commander, 0:16:15.436 --> 0:16:19.076 and then she really was the poster child of Post 0:16:19.116 --> 0:16:23.076 one p. Fifty two. 0:16:30.956 --> 0:16:34.476 Inside the VFW, there was an understanding that the awards 0:16:34.556 --> 0:16:39.636 Sarah had won, the sacrifices she'd made, were fundamentally about service, 0:16:40.276 --> 0:16:43.556 about doing her job, about having the backs of her 0:16:43.556 --> 0:16:47.876 fellow marines. But in the civilian world, her acts of 0:16:47.956 --> 0:16:51.596 valor made her something of a hero for people who'd 0:16:51.596 --> 0:16:55.436 never seen a battlefield. Heroes were the stuff of Hollywood movies, 0:16:55.996 --> 0:16:59.756 people you praised and admired. They certainly weren't people whose 0:16:59.756 --> 0:17:04.756 credentials you questioned, And in the absence of that kind 0:17:04.796 --> 0:17:09.596 of scrutiny, Sarah could truly be that storybook hero, perfect 0:17:09.596 --> 0:17:14.876 blend of valor, tragedy and triumph. That's who Sarah was. 0:17:16.036 --> 0:17:19.396 At her gym place called training for Warriors in Rhode Island. 0:17:20.036 --> 0:17:22.396 We're going to take a deep dive here into the 0:17:22.396 --> 0:17:25.596 world of her gym because if you've been wondering why 0:17:25.596 --> 0:17:28.276 would Sarah do any of this, why would she take 0:17:28.316 --> 0:17:32.396 such risks? What was in it for her? Well, the 0:17:32.436 --> 0:17:39.116 story of her gym offers some very interesting answers. One 0:17:39.156 --> 0:17:41.796 afternoon last fall, I sat down with one of the 0:17:41.876 --> 0:17:43.596 Jim's most passionate members. 0:17:44.836 --> 0:17:48.236 My name is Michelle. I'm from East Greenwich, Rhode Island, 0:17:49.116 --> 0:17:51.036 and I teach fitness classes. 0:17:51.156 --> 0:17:52.556 Do you have a favorite class to teach? 0:17:52.596 --> 0:17:52.676 Oh? 0:17:52.756 --> 0:17:55.396 Yeah, the boot camps by far Slam the rope, slam 0:17:55.436 --> 0:17:58.436 the balls, get that aggression out. Yeah. 0:17:58.876 --> 0:18:02.196 Michelle is in her early sixties with spiky blonde hair. 0:18:02.836 --> 0:18:04.916 She reminds me a lot of the moms from where 0:18:04.916 --> 0:18:08.036 I grew up outside of Boston. When you first meet 0:18:08.076 --> 0:18:10.596 her her at it, it is kind of what the 0:18:10.636 --> 0:18:13.276 hell do you want? Then she'll invite you into her 0:18:13.316 --> 0:18:16.476 home and make you a peanut butter ball and you're in. 0:18:17.916 --> 0:18:21.316 Michelle and Sarah met at the gym. Sarah presented herself 0:18:21.356 --> 0:18:25.716 as a veteran, unemployed and struggling with some injuries. There 0:18:25.756 --> 0:18:28.636 were even a few times that Sarah wore these clunky 0:18:28.716 --> 0:18:31.636 hearing aids that looked like they were from the nineteen eighties. 0:18:32.396 --> 0:18:36.756 Because she was partially deaf, or so she claimed to Michelle. 0:18:37.836 --> 0:18:40.356 One day, Sarah was getting ready to start her workout, 0:18:40.716 --> 0:18:43.716 Michelle noticed that Sarah's sneakers were untied. 0:18:44.076 --> 0:18:46.276 And I was like, oh, your your shoes are untied, 0:18:46.836 --> 0:18:49.236 and so she's like, oh, I can't. I'm not able 0:18:49.276 --> 0:18:51.396 to tie them, and uncle, sit down, girl, we're tying 0:18:51.436 --> 0:18:52.396 those bad boys up. 0:18:53.316 --> 0:18:57.716 So Michelle's words, she became the primary shoe tire. On 0:18:57.756 --> 0:19:00.596 many occasions, Michelle got down on her hands and knees 0:19:00.996 --> 0:19:05.156 just tied Sarah's shoes because Sarah didn't have the dexterity 0:19:05.196 --> 0:19:06.756 in her fingers to do it herself. 0:19:07.716 --> 0:19:09.396 I just looked at her and said, just because you 0:19:09.436 --> 0:19:11.596 ask for help doesn't mean you're helpless. Like, ask for 0:19:11.636 --> 0:19:15.396 someone to help you, don't be silly. And that's sort 0:19:15.396 --> 0:19:19.996 of the way I live my life. You just do you. 0:19:20.196 --> 0:19:22.636 If you want help, ask for it. If you don't 0:19:22.636 --> 0:19:24.836 want help, don't ask for it. And if you tell 0:19:24.876 --> 0:19:28.156 me to keep a secret, I'm going to keep a secret. 0:19:28.636 --> 0:19:32.916 Sarah would eventually tell Michelle a great many secrets about 0:19:32.916 --> 0:19:37.396 herself and her tragic past, secrets that would draw Michelle 0:19:37.436 --> 0:19:38.956 deep into Sarah's world. 0:19:40.156 --> 0:19:43.516 Michelle, along with other members of the gym, came to 0:19:43.556 --> 0:19:47.756 believe that Sarah was suffering from PTSD. Some days, out 0:19:47.796 --> 0:19:52.316 of nowhere, she'd drop into the fetal position. Once, when 0:19:52.356 --> 0:19:56.916 someone was taking pictures, Sarah was triggered. She told Michelle, 0:19:57.356 --> 0:20:01.236 you see a camera, I see a gun. Michelle stepped 0:20:01.276 --> 0:20:04.116 in and asked the person taking the pictures to move. 0:20:05.276 --> 0:20:08.236 This kind of thing. It became a habit for Michelle. 0:20:09.156 --> 0:20:13.476 Would kind of quietly make sure that when she was 0:20:13.476 --> 0:20:15.956 in our environment at the gym, she was protected. 0:20:19.236 --> 0:20:23.596 Sarah had other triggers too. Any surprises or loud noises 0:20:23.796 --> 0:20:27.636 could make her jump literally, which is a real symptom 0:20:27.636 --> 0:20:31.996 of PTSD for vets and for Sarah. Kids were also 0:20:32.036 --> 0:20:36.796 a problem. Yeah. Kids. She told Michelle that she avoided 0:20:36.836 --> 0:20:38.436 them and there was a reason. 0:20:39.236 --> 0:20:41.476 She had told me that she had shot and killed 0:20:41.476 --> 0:20:46.916 a twelve year old boy that was the enemy, and 0:20:46.956 --> 0:20:49.156 she felt she had a lot of guilt related to 0:20:49.196 --> 0:20:52.356 that and a lot of trauma related to that, where 0:20:52.356 --> 0:20:55.676 she would wake up picturing herself shooting that young man 0:20:56.636 --> 0:21:00.156 and just reliving that episode over and over again. 0:21:03.636 --> 0:21:06.596 At this point in the interview with Michelle, my jaw 0:21:06.676 --> 0:21:10.236 was on the floor, because of course this isn't true. 0:21:10.476 --> 0:21:14.196 It's another fictional story Sarah told. But of all the 0:21:14.236 --> 0:21:18.396 lies I'd heard Sarah tell, that one stands out. If 0:21:18.396 --> 0:21:21.796 Sarah was going to make something up about killing someone 0:21:21.836 --> 0:21:26.676 in combat, why say it was a child. It just 0:21:26.796 --> 0:21:30.876 seems so bizarre, the kind of thing that would actually 0:21:30.916 --> 0:21:35.036 put people off from her. But maybe it's because it's 0:21:35.076 --> 0:21:38.516 the kind of story that really does not invite questions. 0:21:40.076 --> 0:21:43.956 Michelle grew attached to Sarah, and their friendship really deepened 0:21:43.956 --> 0:21:47.836 as they started spending time together outside of the gym. 0:21:48.236 --> 0:21:51.156 They'd go for weekly walks in the woods and meet 0:21:51.196 --> 0:21:55.796 for crapes. In those moments, Sarah opened up even more 0:21:55.876 --> 0:21:58.956 about her past. She said she'd been hit by an 0:21:58.996 --> 0:22:03.196 IED blast in Iraq, that she developed a traumatic brain 0:22:03.276 --> 0:22:08.156 injury and damaged her lungs. All of this came out 0:22:08.396 --> 0:22:13.316 piece by peace, one walk at a time, and despite 0:22:13.436 --> 0:22:19.876 all she was facing, Sarah remained resilient, upbeat. Even her 0:22:19.956 --> 0:22:23.036 nickname at the gym was actually Sunshine. 0:22:23.196 --> 0:22:27.916 She was very likable, she was very charismatic, and then 0:22:27.996 --> 0:22:31.196 on top of it, she was a veteran and badass 0:22:31.276 --> 0:22:34.876 and had these injuries and she was coming back from them. 0:22:35.876 --> 0:22:39.316 But a few years into Sarah and Michelle's friendship, Sarah's 0:22:39.316 --> 0:22:42.876 health took a decisive turn for the worse. During their 0:22:42.876 --> 0:22:46.516 walks in the woods, she couldn't catch her breath. Sometimes 0:22:46.516 --> 0:22:51.956 she needs stop altogether. And one day Sarah tells Michelle why. 0:22:53.276 --> 0:22:55.276 She's like, well, I found out why I'm short of breath. 0:22:55.356 --> 0:22:59.676 I have terminal cancer. I have burn pit cancer, lung cancer. 0:23:00.196 --> 0:23:03.396 So now I'm thinking, shoot, she has no depth perception, 0:23:03.516 --> 0:23:08.996 she's deaf in one ear, she has tactile efficiencies, she 0:23:09.836 --> 0:23:13.716 has steel plates in her shoulders, she's got a rod 0:23:13.756 --> 0:23:16.516 in her leg, she's got PTSD, and now she's got 0:23:16.516 --> 0:23:18.916 burn pit cancer. I'm like, how much more can one 0:23:18.996 --> 0:23:21.516 person handle in their life? 0:23:23.396 --> 0:23:27.516 The gym rallied to help Sarah. They raised thousands of dollars. 0:23:27.756 --> 0:23:31.316 They cooked her meals and peanut butter balls. One couple 0:23:31.356 --> 0:23:35.076 even got her brand new hearing aids. Whatever Sarah said 0:23:35.156 --> 0:23:38.756 she needed, the gym community tried to give it to her. 0:23:40.476 --> 0:23:42.956 And all of this was more than just a pet 0:23:43.076 --> 0:23:46.796 charity was a moment that seemed to clarify what this 0:23:46.916 --> 0:23:50.316 community was all about. It wasn't just someplace where you 0:23:50.436 --> 0:23:54.036 did burpies and crunches. It was a place where people 0:23:54.156 --> 0:23:57.876 showed up each day with and for one another, a 0:23:57.876 --> 0:24:01.916 place where when someone was struggling a hero, someone who'd 0:24:02.036 --> 0:24:05.876 served and suffered and still mustered a little bit of sunshine, 0:24:06.356 --> 0:24:10.276 then damn it, you did something about it. Rallied not 0:24:10.356 --> 0:24:12.276 just because it was the right thing to do, but 0:24:12.316 --> 0:24:15.716 because it was an affirmation of who this community was. 0:24:16.876 --> 0:24:20.756 It almost seemed like Sarah, with her needs, provided something 0:24:21.156 --> 0:24:22.956 that the gym itself needed to. 0:24:39.276 --> 0:24:43.396 The gym buddies showered Sarah with many gifts, and perhaps 0:24:43.436 --> 0:24:47.196 the greatest of these was a wedding. Here's how it 0:24:47.196 --> 0:24:51.076 went down. Sarah told people at the gym that she 0:24:51.196 --> 0:24:54.196 was engaged to Nicole, and their main problem was that 0:24:54.236 --> 0:24:57.316 they couldn't find a wedding venue. But there was this 0:24:57.396 --> 0:25:01.116 couple from the gym, Kate and Mark Feudy. They're in 0:25:01.156 --> 0:25:04.756 their mid fifties. Both had worked at Duncan Donuts headquarters 0:25:05.316 --> 0:25:07.676 where they met and fell in love. That's a New 0:25:07.676 --> 0:25:11.236 Englander's dream, if you ask me. They often took Sarah 0:25:11.276 --> 0:25:13.916 out for dinner, let her use their pool as part 0:25:13.916 --> 0:25:17.796 of her physical therapy. It became really close, almost like 0:25:17.836 --> 0:25:22.076 a set of surrogate parents, Kate and Mark, also have 0:25:22.156 --> 0:25:24.876 a place up in Vermont. Kay told us that one 0:25:24.916 --> 0:25:29.236 day Sarah just kind of dropped the hint, told them. 0:25:29.116 --> 0:25:31.596 Well, we want to get married. We just we can't 0:25:31.596 --> 0:25:33.916 afford it, but we really want. And she almost like 0:25:33.956 --> 0:25:37.276 it's almost like she knew that we had. We said, well, 0:25:37.316 --> 0:25:40.556 you know, if you're willing to go to the Northeast Kingdom, 0:25:40.916 --> 0:25:42.956 we could see what we could do. You know, if 0:25:42.956 --> 0:25:45.516 you wanted to have a wedding, a backyard wedding, you know, 0:25:45.596 --> 0:25:48.116 a small backyard wedding, we have a place up there. 0:25:49.396 --> 0:25:53.956 They're underselling it, but gorgeous farmhouse originally built in eighteen 0:25:54.036 --> 0:25:58.276 fifty one, kind of classic Vermont charm. 0:25:58.556 --> 0:26:00.236 I said to them, like, we have so much like 0:26:00.396 --> 0:26:03.436 farmhouse decor. I go, you should just don't waste money 0:26:03.476 --> 0:26:06.516 on anything for the wedding, just use stuff from around 0:26:06.516 --> 0:26:07.276 the house, you know. 0:26:08.236 --> 0:26:11.276 So problem solved, right, Sarah and Nicole now had a 0:26:11.316 --> 0:26:16.556 picture perfect venue for free. But for Sarah, there was 0:26:16.596 --> 0:26:21.396 actually potential for disaster still lurking. In an act of 0:26:21.516 --> 0:26:25.636 true boldness, Sarah had created a guest list that included 0:26:25.996 --> 0:26:28.676 both people who believed her to be a war hero, 0:26:29.436 --> 0:26:33.396 and people who knew damn well that she wasn't one. 0:26:33.516 --> 0:26:36.156 You had her buddies from the gym in the VFW, 0:26:36.956 --> 0:26:40.116 and then you had people like her own parents who 0:26:40.236 --> 0:26:43.476 knew she'd never served a day in her life. And 0:26:43.476 --> 0:26:47.796 if people started mingling and chatting, as wedding guests tend 0:26:47.836 --> 0:26:53.916 to do, Sarah's lie would quickly be outed. Sarah's saving grace, 0:26:54.556 --> 0:26:58.876