Sgt. Jason Swofford, the Castle Rock Marine and young father injured in Afghanistan last week, is badly hurt but is “very strong” and expected to pull through, his mother said Thursday.

Swofford, 25, was leading a patrol in the Nawa district of Helmand province of Afghanistan on Oct. 30 when an improvised explosive device detonated. He suffered severe injuries to his face and right arm and will need surgeries to reconstruct those areas. He’s still getting help breathing and is heavily medicated for pain. A muscle from his back will be put in his arm to help him regain movement, his mother, Starla Braga, said by telephone from the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

“He’s a strong, strong, strong guy both mentally and physically,” said Braga, of Castle Rock. “He has a long road ahead of him, but he’s going to pull through.”

Also in Maryland are Swofford’s wife, Alissa, of Portland; 10-month-old son, Logan; father, Marty Swofford Sr., also of Castle Rock; and brother Marty Swofford Jr. His brother is in the Navy and both his parents were in the Army.

Prior to his Afghanistan tour, Swofford spent a year in Iraq. He was due home next month, which would have been the first time he saw his son since he was four months old, Braga said.

Swofford grew up in Castle Rock and attended Castle Rock High School as a member of the Class of 2001. He later got his GED. In 2004 he earned an associate’s degree from Lower Columbia College before joining the Marines. He has numerous relatives in the area.

Family and friends who want to send letters and cards to Swofford can do so at the following address:

Sgt. Jason A. Swofford, National Naval Medical Center, 8901 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD, 20889-5600.

Braga said doctors expect Swofford to remain at the hospital “indefinitely.”