A W.B. Yeats quote greets soldiers as they enter the classroom of Shawn Wong at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on a frosty, fall morning: “Write about yourself when you are most like yourself.” A UW professor since 1984, and former chair of the English Department and director of the Creative Writing Program, Wong has taught college students to become storytellers. Far from the UW campus, however, the quote holds new meaning. For many soldiers, voicing their experiences is literally lifesaving.
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Wong is one of four instructors volunteering with the Red Badge Project, which
launched last August at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. A nonprofit in partnership with the military, the Red Badge Project teaches soldiers in the Warrior Transition Battalion to express themselves through photography, filmmaking and creative writing. This battalion is
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comprised of active-duty, Guard and Reserve soldiers diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other injuries.
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“When you find out that more soldiers committed
suicide than were killed in Afghanistan last year (2012), you feel you have to do something,” BY DEANNA DUFF
Wong says.
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The Red Badge Project was co-founded by movie star Tom Skerritt, an Air
Force veteran. He also serves as one of the project¹s film instructors, along with screenwriters Brian McDonald and Warren Etheredge. Class is four hours daily for three weeks and participation is voluntary. Soldiers range in rank and are in their early 20s to mid-50s. Some are initially so withdrawn, they’re unable to even make eye contact. Amazingly, the walls often come down as soon as the third day of instruction. Students become fully engaged, eagerly pouring their thoughts into composition notebooks. Coursework includes analyzing short stories, writing exercises and polishing compositions. There are no grades, but Wong still assigns homework.
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“In this classroom,
I’m in charge. I outrank everybody!” jokes Wong, a statement contradicted by his students’ affectionate and robust laughter.
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Considering the gravity of many discussions, humor is a constant balance. Skerritt is frequently enlisted to
act in soldier-written scripts. “Any piece, no matter how serious, Tom always turns it into a comedy!” one student says, n
Wong looks forward to sharing the program with more UW colleagues. “Part of our job
immensely serving their country, Wong is gratified to now serve them. “In my 28 years of teaching at the UW, this is one of the most rewarding and difficult teaching challenges I’ve ever faced.”
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AN IL KAPAHI
overcome with amusement.
as a public institution is to do public scholarship and be in the community,” he says. For soldiers who have sacrificed