Photographer Michael Stokes’ upcoming book Always Loyal features breathtaking nude and seminude imagery of amputee veterans of the U.S. Military.
According to the project’s Kickstarter page, “Each veteran will have a bio page and details related to his or her injuries. The vast majority of these veterans have lost one or multiple limbs from IED attacks.”
Related: How Alex Minsky Turned Tragedy Into Triumph With An Unlikely Modeling Career
And it seems Stokes’ head-on approach in confronting war’s uncomfortable outcomes in a way that honors the beauty of those who’ve sacrificed has struck a chord. In eleven days, the fundraising effort has left the $48,250 goal in the dust, and at the time of this post is at $204,476.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Take a look at some of the photos below:
Find out more in the video below:
Atomicrob
Beautiful men . . . and courageous . . . bless ’em all . . .
Cagnazzo82
2nd guy may be wounded, but he looks like a work of art to me.
Such perfect proportions.
Rich Penway
if you’re a fan of Alex Minsky, one of the guys in the book,,,, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Alex-Minsky-for-the-next-Peoples-Magazine-Sexiest-Man-Alive/1120066678020378
Marco Rodriguez
Bill Mark Justin ð??»ð??»ð??»ð??»ð??ð??
Glücklich
5th still from the top, in B&W. That guy is perfection. Absolutely stunning.
And one can never go wrong with Alex Minsky, especially flattered by the photograph included. Something about the ink against his relatively paler skin drives me wild.
David Bumgardner
Its a shame these beautiful men had to go to war and be ruined!
ingyaom
Sorry to see some of these guys covering their crotches – like they’ve got something to hide (or that’s a natural-looking pose).
Sylvia Varga
My, oh my…
bottom250
MMMM I would love to polish their guns.
Joseph T.D. Anaya
Their courage adds to their beauty.
Emery Biggar
Sexy is sexy… No matter
Stache99
@David Bumgardner: Ruined? That’s sure not what I saw. I saw nothing but beautiful men.
ProfessorMoriarty
Hear, hear. These are beautiful, brave, HOT men.
Alistair Wiseman
@David Bumgardner:
Ruined? I think you missed the point of the project.
Billy Budd
It is a shame they got wounded. They are so perfect in every other way!
Cam
So people like Senator McCain and other GOP officials who have voted against increasing benefits for Vets, but say we should send troops into places like Syria, Ukraine, Libya, Iran, don’t care if thousands more soldiers like this get blown up, killed and maimed.
These are great pictures, but lets not forget what they went have had to get through and overcome because some people and their donors feel like the U.S. should be in a perpetual state of war.
Shelly Morano
Super sexy 🙂 beauty is beauty ..love
jwtraveler
So stumps and prosthetics are sexy now. OK.
patricko
@David Bumgardner: Gosh David, maybe you should post your fully body picture so we can see what an “unruined” body looks like. I think these men are gorgeous and quite the opposite of ruined.
KEVINVENTION
@Stache99: I thought the same thing. “Ruined”? Hardly… 😉
F. Jay Ver
It is beautiful and challenging.
Billysees
@Atomicrob:
” Beautiful men . . . and courageous . . . bless ’em all . . . ”
Worthy to be repeated.
atomic
These photos are so empowering.
Cagnazzo82
@jwtraveler: These people are more than ‘stumps and prosthetics’ and they’re in better shape than most people who have all their limbs.
Stop being so absurdly shallow.
Reinhard Michaels
Beautiful a must view
stranded
@Alistair Wiseman: that’s exactly what i was going to say.
sobercool
Good to see they don’t skip leg day!
Beautiful and strong men.
denny155
David Bumgardner Its a shame these beautiful men had to go to war
and be ruined!
Like a few of the others, I didn’t see anyone in those pics that looked ruined. I saw folks that looked resilient, determined, courageous and Here!!
I am a retired Navy veteran, I did not take any offense @David Bumgardner comments. On the other hand, I would definitely have used a different a very different term.
youarekiddingme
Wow! Awesome shoot! I’m a vet too and these guys are beyond description! The 4th guy down caught my attention so much that I thought they made a mistake, I didn’t see ANY prosthetic on that hot guy…had to look twice! Heros all.
KEVINVENTION
@youarekiddingme: Hon, Fawn all you want. But you need glassesThey ALL are disblec. And look pretty damn good while they’re doing it, too..
KEVINVENTION
*Sorry for the typos: Ny new phone sucks a Weiner.p by TV
TeaForTwo
These gentlemen are simply amazing. The courage and determination they possess is evinced in the beauty and strength of their bodies. Kudos to each and every one of them!