Memorial Day, and the reason/manner in which she observed it, changed dramatically for Scoti Domeij on October 22, 2011. That was the day her son Kristoffer was killed in Afghanistan. That was the day Scoti “was drafted against her own worst fears” into a club that no one wants to belong to; the Gold Star moms. Sgt. First Class Kristoffer Domeij Scoti shares her journey of grief from the shock of the initial notification to her current endeavors [...]
Mike Day had been shot at plenty of times during his two decades as a Navy SEAL, but he had never been hit. That changed dramatically the night of April 6, 2007. Mike was part of a 22 member assault team tasked with striking an al-Qaeda cell responsible for shooting down several Marine helicopters. Mike was the first through the door and was immediately met with a hail of bullets by terrorists firing AK-47’s, an M-4 and pistols. Mike was [...]
Sally Roberts had a rough start in life. So much so that a judge finally told her she had a choice between finding a productive after school activity and being sent to juvenile hall. After trying (and failing) at several team sports she finally tried wrestling – and it changed the trajectory of her life. Sally Roberts With hard work and grit Sally became a world class athlete. She was US National Champion, a two time world bronze [...]
Veterans Portrait Project founder Stacy Pearsall knew she would join the military – members of her family had served since the Revolutionary War. She wanted to do something creative and became an Air Force combat photographer. She was a good one, practicing her craft in over 41 countries and twice winning the National Press Photographers Association “Military Photographer of the Year” award. War is gruesome. An added challenge for combat photographers is that they often have to relive those moments [...]
Bobby Henline could have given up. But he didn’t. Now he uses humor to help others heal as well. Henline joined the Army at the age of 17 and deployed as part of Operation Desert Storm. He served for three years before leaving the Army to move on with his life. Like many Veterans, Bobby was compelled to re-enlist following the 9/11 attacks and went through boot camp again as a 30 year old. On April 7, 2007 - three [...]
Capt. Christy Wise, Air Force HC-130J Pilot Invictus translated from Latin means unconquered. Captain Christy Wise was fulfilling her dream as an Air Force C-130 pilot when a hit and run boating accident nearly took her life and resulted in the amputation of her right leg above the knee. As a testament to her unconquered spirit, while still in the ambulance, Wise was already resolved to not let this injury end her career as a pilot. She was [...]
Members of our elite military units are trained to be prepared to Conquer Anything. Greg Stube served 19 years as a member of the Green Berets and has written an outstanding book that translates the lessons he learned in the special teams to compelling ideas applicable to the civilian world. Life has a way of shooting holes in our best laid plans. In Greg’s case it was literal – a chunk of shrapnel the size of a plate passed through his [...]
Michael Reagan has drawn more than 2,000 portraits of celebrities and other notable persons. But this world renowned artist made an open ended promise to President George W. Bush after the 9-11 attacks. He has fulfilled that promise by providing free hand drawn portraits for Gold Star families through his Fallen Heroes Project. He joins us to share his thoughts on Memorial Day. His mission is to never forget and never let anyone else forget as long as he has [...]
The first time Carolyn Furdek “locked in” was during a convoy mission no different than hundreds of others she had conducted before. It was the beginning of a decade long struggle against an invisible enemy. Carolyn competed at the collegiate level in swimming, graduated airborne school with honors and was one of the first West Point cadets to attend Naval Diving and Salvage training. She was no stranger to stressful situations. But for some reason, something was causing a confident [...]
Justin Jordan spent six of his 20 years in the Air Force as a mortuary technician and it had a profound effect upon his mental well being. His experiences are recounted in his book “And Then I Cried; Stories of a Mortuary NCO”. Like many people, Justin wanted to get out of his small town so he joined the Air Force. He was assigned to the services career field, a “jack of all trades” assignment that includes cooks, hotel management, [...]