They hike Tulsa’s Gathering Place, ride bikes together, and spend weekends wake surfing. But behind the active lifestyle are invisible wounds that shape every day of their lives.

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Samuel and Jenna, both proud Marine Corps veterans, have built a family rooted in service, resilience, and adventure. Their sons, Jayden and Sage, fill the house with energy.

Whether it’s basketball in the driveway, Lego masterpieces on the living room floor, puzzles spread across the table, or new recipes bubbling in the kitchen, the Grosso home thrives on curiosity, connection, and togetherness.

But woven into that daily joy are invisible challenges.

Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) affect both Samuel and Jayden, shaping the rhythm of family life in ways most people never see.

A Dual-Service Family

Samuel served as a combat engineer in Iraq from 2005–2009. His work placed him at the center of blasts, vehicle crashes, and high-risk missions. Though he came home without visible scars, the repeated concussive waves left him with multiple TBIs.

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“When I went to the VA, I was like, hey, these are my experiences, I’m really motivated in trying to heal myself,” Samuel recalled. “And one thing my doctor told me was like, ‘Oh, well, you know, we’re not here to heal you. We’re here to treat your symptoms.’”

Samuel’s wife, Jenna, also served eight years in the Marine Corps, including work with the early Lioness program alongside special forces.

However, Samuel says Jenna’s service is often overlooked. “Sometimes people see me as the veteran and they don’t see Jenna, right? Even though she… did a lot of things with special forces [and] was really a high achiever.”

Jenna credits Samuel with helping her recognize her service and prioritize her health, saying, “I wasn’t even recognizing myself as a veteran until Sam helped me recognize myself as a veteran. And so I got on the path to taking care of myself.”

The Ripple Effect of TBIs

For Samuel, living with TBI means good days and hard days. He works to stay engaged and present, but symptoms like brain fog and emotional instability make consistency difficult.

Their 14-year-old son, Jayden, faces his own uphill battle. A serious brain injury in third grade left him struggling with attention, transitions, and sensory overload. Though he’s athletic, curious, and creative, overstimulating environments can quickly overwhelm him.

The combination of Samuel’s and Jayden’s needs makes family life complex. Jenna carefully balances therapies, appointments, and routines, often at the expense of the simple quality time every family craves.

But one treatment has made a measurable difference: hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT).

A Glimpse of Hope

HBOT involves breathing pure oxygen inside a pressurized chamber, which increases oxygen flow to the brain and helps repair damaged tissue. Research shows it can improve sleep, cognitive function, and emotional regulation for people with brain injuries.

But access has always been a problem.

Jayden currently receives about ten HBOT sessions a month at a local clinic, well below the recommended frequency. Samuel has seen promise as well, but the high cost of sessions and the logistics of frequent travel have kept him from consistent treatment.

“We see the steps forward and the steps backward, especially in my older son, Jayden, when he’s able to get the therapy versus when he doesn’t have it,” Samuel says. “So there’s a huge difference.”

That’s why Chive Charities stepped in to purchase a $7,570 home HBOT chamber for the Grosso family.

Healing at Home

For Samuel, a home HBOT chamber means the chance at improved memory, better sleep, and the emotional balance to stay fully engaged as a husband and father.

For Jayden, it means sharper focus, steadier transitions, and the ability to keep pace at school and enjoy the sports and hobbies he loves.

For the family, it means less time in waiting rooms, fewer financial worries, and more moments together doing what they love.

The Grosso family has always been resilient and proactive. They’ve chased every available therapy, balanced countless appointments, and refused to give up on healing. What they lacked wasn’t determination; it was access.

With this grant, that barrier is gone. The home HBOT chamber represents stability, hope, and the chance for Samuel and Jayden to thrive, not just get by.

Invisible wounds don’t disappear overnight. But with the right tools and community support, families like the Grossos can move forward stronger than ever.

Thanks to Chive Charities, that journey is already underway.

If you’d like to play a part in changing the story for the next family we support, join us as a Chive Charities donor right HERE.