When we talk about “forgotten veterans,” we often think of those who served in the Korean War. Many veterans of that conflict feel as though they got lost between the WWII Generation and the Vietnam Veterans. I once had the honor of working with Sergeant Major (Retired) Raymond Moran, a Read more…
Have you ever had one of those moments, somewhere between two and four in the morning, when your eyes spring open and you find yourself staring at the ceiling, hoping that you can get back to sleep but knowing that it’s probably not going to happen? Then the thoughts start to Read more…
This post was originally written in July of 2016 in response to two ambush-style attacks by former military service members in Dallas and Baton Rouge. For the second time in two weeks, a former service member has committed a heinous and horrifying attack on American soil. Are these the only crimes that Read more…
Of the things I enjoyed about my military deployments, one of the most unique was: free books. Wherever I was deployed to around the world, there was always a room, a tent, a building, in which books were donated to be sent overseas to the troops. Inevitably, I always returned Read more…
Let’s get the “Killing Machine” argument out of the way. I don’t know about you, but I have successfully refrained from engaging in cold-blooded pre-meditated murder after I left the service, and I have twenty-two years of service and three combat tours. It is human nature to fear what Read more…
Everyone has a story. You just have to listen to it. As a mental health counselor working exclusively with veterans, it often surprises me how difficult it is…and also how easy…for a veteran to be able to tell their story. The impacts of combat, deployments, or even just military Read more…
In late 1999, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, I jumped out of an airplane in the fog. Through the quirks of assignments during a 22 year Army career, I’ve only had the pleasure of two Airborne assignments out of eight or nine different ones. Those two were three years as Read more…
This is the second post in a series of articles describing how a group of veterans in Colorado Springs are attempting to make a difference for other veterans in their community. You can read the FIRST POST HERE. As described in the first post in this series, I am firmly Read more…
This is the fourth post in a series of articles describing how a group of veterans in Colorado Springs are attempting to make a difference for other veterans in their community. You can read the FIRST POST HERE, the SECOND POST HERE, and the THIRD POST HERE. Ma Deuce. Ol’ Read more…
As I look back on some of my posts, I get the sense that I could be giving the impression that all military service members are strong, capable, infallible heroes striding through the modern battlefield fighting for truth, justice, and the American Way. That simply by serving their country, veterans Read more…