Morgan and Joe Hahn in Longport September 2019.
By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
LONGPORT – As the Longport American Legion Post 469 works to identify its next Wounded Warrior Week recipient, last year’s awardee, U.S. Navy SEAL Ret. Joe Hahn and his wife are facing new challenges with Morgan Hahn’s recent cancer diagnosis.
Hahn and his wife Morgan, along with their four sons made quite an impression on Legionnaires and residents when they visited Longport last September. They were treated to an all-expenses-paid vacation and honored at a reception held at Café Luciano that was attended by 100 local, county, state and federal dignitaries and Wounded Warrior Week supporters.
According to the biography provided to the media, Joe Hahn has been affected by cancer before. He lived in more than 50 foster homes after his mother died of cancer. Nevertheless, he persisted and enlisted in the Navy after 9/11 and became a Navy SEAL. He was deployed several times to Iraq and Afghanistan and was medically discharged after sustaining multiple injuries in separate incidents. Each injury required several surgeries and 10 months of recovery time before he was able to return to his unit. A grenade that exploded near him and his comrades in 2007 earned him a Purple Heart. After his last two deployments, the extent of his injuries required more surgeries and rehabilitation.
“He is the type of individual who makes this country great and why we are so incredibly proud to be Americans,” Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson said at the reception.
U.S. Navy SEAL Joe Hahn, his wife Morgan and three of their four sons. Their boys are Hunter, 12, Blake, 5, Clayton, 3, and Gunner, 18 months.
Although they thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality of the locals, soon after they returned to their home in Oklahoma, Morgan was diagnosed with a severe case of cancer, and faced a year of treatments that left her weak and physically drained much of the time.
In addition, the family faced some financial concerns. Joe Hahn had recently obtained new employment, but the family needed the help of a nanny to deal with their four boys, ages 12 to 18 months.
Legionnaires rallied for the Hahn family a second time and conducted a fundraising effort that provided them with $5,000 for Christmas, according to Legion Commander Larry Pacentrilli.
Since then, Morgan has undergone monthly treatments that have successfully reduced the size of the cancerous tumor by half, Pacentrilli said.
Morgan’s doctors believe the tumor has shrunk enough to remove it surgically and she is scheduled for surgery later this month, he said.
In the meantime, the Hahn family has left Oklahoma to return to Texas where they can be aided by the support of family members.
“The American Legion asks that everyone keep Morgan and her family in your prayers as they face the upcoming surgery, hoping for the best possible outcome,” Pacentrilli said.
Each September, Post 469 sponsors Wounded Warrior Week, when they bring a service-recommended Wounded Warrior and family to the Jersey shore for a one week all-expense-paid vacation. The vacation is funded by contributions from residents and businesses. While they vacation at a donated luxury beach-block home, the family is treated to various activities, dinners and a military style ceremony/reception in their honor.
Additionally, Downbeach communities join the effort with a surprise welcoming parade where the family is placed in an open limousine and escorted through Ventnor, Margate and Longport with hundreds of residents cheering them along the parade route.
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