Diane Hight didn’t know why her father had become an alcoholic. It wasn’t until much later in life she realized that he was suffering silently from his experiences in World War II. This discovery and her abiding respect for the generation that fought in WWII and Korea led her to found Forever Young Veterans. “They are a generation that has never asked for anything. I thought at the very least I could grant some special wishes for them.” Since 2006 [...]
Fisher House Chairman & CEO Ken Fisher is carrying on the wonderful program first created by his great uncle Zachary Fisher. To date, the Fisher House has provided support to over 430,000 military and Veteran families in the form of free lodging and travel. Neither Ken nor Zachary served in the military. But when Zach heard the USS Intrepid was going to be scrapped he led an initiative to have the ship preserved and converted to a museum that hosts [...]
The transition from military to civilian life is the principle focus of our regular Havok Journal update with Editor Scott Faith. The transition can be more difficult for some than it is for others. Scott himself is retiring from the Army soon after 28 years in service. Several articles on the topic have been published on Havok Journal and we discuss highlights of each. “Observations of a Transitioning Officer – Time to Go” by Josh McKaskill “A Green Beret Leaves [...]
Valor Club is an innovative master planned community specifically designed for transitioning Veterans. The development will be built on 200 acres five miles southeast of San Antonio. At full build out, the $330 million dollar community will include 1,400 residential units on a campus also featuring various support amenities and services. This community will be the first of its kind on this scale. Michael McDowell is the President & CEO of Valor Club and a Marine Veteran with multiple combat [...]
Sentinels of Freedom began as a way of honoring young people choosing to join the military out of high school. Following the 9/11 attacks, Mike Conklin and his group realized that some of these young people would be coming home severely injured and would likely need extra help. Their first “Sentinel” had been run over by a tank. Mike’s group arranged for a donated four year apartment lease, a car, furniture and everything he would need to start his life [...]
Folds of Honor Executive Vice President of Operations and Relationships Col. James “Nick” Nichols joins us to share their story and how all of us can support this honorable cause. Folds of Honor provides scholarships to spouses and children of America’s fallen and disabled service members. To date they have granted 35,000 scholarships with an educational impact in excess of $160 million. The idea for Folds of Honor came to Founder Lt. Col. Dan Rooney through an experience on an [...]
Carry the Load co-founders Stephen Holley and Clint Bruce are both Navy SEAL Veterans. The idea for their initiative was born out of anger and frustration, feeling that Americans were drifting away from the original purpose of Memorial Day. On Memorial Day 2010 Clint decided to undergo physical pain as an emotional purge. He loaded his pack with one pound for every comrade he had lost. During that walk he encountered a WWII Veteran who asked him; “Who are you [...]
Pin-Ups for Vets founder Gina Elise began to hear news stories about Iraq war Veterans needing medical care and she wanted to do something creative to help. Her grandfather served in WWII and Gina had always been a fan of that era’s pin-up art. So in 2006 she decided to create a classy, 1940’s style pin-up calendar to raise money for Veterans. After donating $5,000 in proceeds from the first calendar to a local Veteran’s hospital, she began to get [...]
American Warrior Garage was inspired by a chance encounter in a department store parking lot. Scott Jones and his friend Vince Gibson had been restoring cars together for about 20 years. One day they noticed a Veteran who had lost both legs to an IED blast “wheeling around” Vince’s 1969 El Camino. A conversation about classic cars ensued with the Veteran saying “Man, I’d like to be able to drive one of those.” Both Scott and Vince are Navy Veterans [...]
Veteran’s Repertory Theater President and Artistic Director Christopher Paul Meyer had acting in his blood. He comes from three generations of theater performers. But the 9/11 attacks created a long detour from the performance arts. Chris found some success acting, including a small role in a television soap opera. He chose to focus his energies on stand-up comedy because that allowed him to be more entrepreneurial. His directorial debut was a one act “off-off Broadway” comedy. Opening weekend went well, [...]