AfterU.S.ArmyveteranJakeNorotsky’sdeployment to Iraq,hispost-traumatic stress (PTSD)wassosevere he consideredsuicide.Afterhe registeredfor Wounded WarriorProject®(WWP),he realizedthatother veteranssharedsimilar experiencesandthathewasnotalone.Today, Jakehas anew mission: toconnect withaudiencesaroundthenation by sharinghis story.
When youpledge your Combined FederalCampaigndonation to WWP, youwill helpprovideinjured veteransandtheir familiesaccess to life-changingprograms andservices to helpthem reachtheirhighestambition.
Executive Editor of At Ease
Eli Wohlenhaus
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Holiday spirit
What a fun cover. It perfectly encapsulates what this edition is meant to be. I personally celebrate Christmas, and although it is just before Thanksgiving as I am writing this, I have already tuned into some music and movies for the festive season.
What is it that makes this time of year so magical and filled with hope? If you are a sports fan, depending on who you root for, this could be an especially exciting time if you’re a football fan and your team is headed to the playoffs. Speaking of, and I don’t want to jinx anything that will be forever preserved in print, but if you are a college football fan excited for the 12-team playoff, there is one team in particular that is relevant to our readers who have a really good chance of making it in. OK, I will leave it at that.
No matter what you celebrate, how you celebrate, or who you celebrate it with, we wish you a very happy holidays and look forward to an exciting 2025 with you.
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Who’s behind the mic at Wreaths Across America Radio
Meet the man who keeps WAA Radio running smoothly
and Omaha before landing in the Shenandoah Valley. That’s when he was approached by Jeff Pierce, Director of Broadcast and Media Partnerships, about volunteering for WAA Radio.
From a secret location in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, the man behind all the broadcasters behind the mics of Wreaths Across America
Radio works his magic to bring more than 60 different shows to station listeners all day, every day.
While he’d probably laugh at this description, WAA Radio program manager Chris Chapman admits he fills an important role for the station. He oversees all the podcast partners and broadcasters, the station staff and keeps track of what’s happening live on air and what’s up next on the program log. But with more than 35 years of radio experience behind his belt, it’s a job Chapman is well suited to do.
He began his radio career in the New England area, spending time in New Mexico, Minneapolis
“Jeff was my former radio operations manager in Bangor, Maine, in the mid-90s,” said Chapman. “When he took over WAA Radio, he asked if I could do some volunteering as the station grew. Then it became a part time job and two years ago a full-time position.”
Chapman said that he spent most of his time as a broadcaster at country music stations, doing morning radio shows.
“That means a 2:45 a.m. alarm, going in and preparing your show every day,” he explained. “The object of being a morning talent is to wake people up with a smile, give them some music and be some company on their way to work. And it’s a great feeling when people say, ‘we love to wake up with you every morning.’ This is a completely
Story and photos by Alice Swan
Photos provided by Wreaths Across America
different great feeling, because when people say they are tuning in to WAA Radio, I know they are tuning in because they have a passion for veterans, veterans’ causes or the military or finding out more about WAA, because we are the loudspeaker for WAA. There are so many rewarding things for us every single day, we never know what’s going to happen.”
But Chapman had a more personal reason for joining the Wreaths Across America team. He is a Blue Star parent — his son Ben Chapman is a United States Coast Guard pilot.
“Ben went to the Coast Guard Academy, graduating in 2016, and was afloat for a couple of years and then was accepted to flight school in Pensacola,” Chapman noted. “Now he is flying C-134 search and rescue missions out of Coast Guard Air Station Miami.”
As a Blue Star parent, Chapman said he has a deeper respect for the WAA mission and its radio station programming.
“Having grown up as a very patriotic individual, I was drawn to WAA from that standpoint and I also had prior experience with the Worcester family who started WAA while I was working in down east Maine on station Lucky 99,” he said. “But it’s the story of WAA board chairman Wayne Hanson (a
Vietnam War veteran), when he was approached by a parent at Arlington National Cemetery in 2012 who said, ‘What about my son, where is his wreath?’ and it is that line, especially as a Blue Star dad that makes this mission so important. Because at some point, wherever Ben may end up being, someone’s going to lay a wreath on his grave and [they’re] going to take care of him… I can feel comfort knowing Ben will have a wreath on his grave.”
Chapman is preparing for his busiest week at WAA Radio — all centered on the delivery of those remembrance wreaths this month. The annual escort to Arlington will start on Dec. 8, when WAA’s wreath convoy begins its trek from the company headquarters in Columbia Falls, Maine, to Arlington. This special convoy of trucks and partner vehicles makes two to three stops a day along the route, at schools, VFW or American Legion posts and other locations, arriving at Arlington in time for National Wreaths Across America Day on Dec. 14.
‘I will be managing the live broadcasts during every escort stop,” Chapman explained. “Broadcast Director Jeff Pierce and his crew follow the escort, and call in to me, so I get to hear the experience from the same standpoint as our listeners. What I
get to hear are the emotions coming through the microphone. We had one woman who talked about her veteran dad and I’m sitting in my studio wiping tears away, like our listeners might be.”
Getting to hear heartfelt moments like those are why Chapman hopes listeners will tune in to WAA Radio. The station may be geared to veterans and families of veterans but anyone who happens upon the station will learn about America, and what it is like to be in the military, he noted.
“Our executive director Karen Worcester wants to make sure we educate not just the next generation, but the generations that follow, on what it means to serve, what it means to be in a military family, what it means to be a veteran,” Chapman added. “It’s what we do every day, putting the mission forth to anyone listening, anyone on Facebook or on our Cloud page. It’s all out there for people to click on and listen.”
You can find WAA Radio at https://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/Newsroom/ WreathsAcrossAmericaRadio. You’ll see the broadcast schedule, a link to the sound cloud page and a link to the Wreaths Morning radio show to share your veteran story. WAA Radio can also be found on IHeart Radio, Audacy and TuneIn.
Greet the Wreaths Across America Escort to Arlington convoy at Dover Motor Speedway
Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and Washington, D.C., area veterans, military members, retirees and their families are invited to a special Escort to Arlington event at the Dover Motor Speedway and Bally’s Dover on Thursday, Dec. 12. Before arriving at Arlington National Cemetery, the Wreaths Across America delivery convoy is stopping at the Dover Motor Speedway in Dover, Delaware for a tribute to veterans at the race track’s Monster Mile Monument on the east side of the track, announced WAA Escort stop coordinator Doug Poore, with the Greater Harrington Historical Society.
Poore, the curator for the society’s three museums in Harrington, Delaware, shared that he jokingly mentioned the idea of having the WAA Escort to Arlington stop at the Motor Speedway when the convoy stopped in Harrington last year. The WAA Escort team loved the idea and Poore has spent the past months making sure it happened.
“I made a request to the management of the Speedway, and they eagerly agreed,” Poore shared. “The owners, Speedway Motor Sports LLC have always been supportive of the military community, and Bally’s immediately agreed to host a Veterans Fair and both companies could not be more supportive; they’ve gone above and beyond, in offering help and logistical support.”
Before the Monster Mile tribute, the Veterans Fair at Bally’s Dover will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Veterans, retirees, service members and their families will find more than 30 veteran service organizations on site to provide information on benefits, resources and programs available to those who have served. Among the organizations participating will be area VA Medical Center personnel, Disabled American Veterans and others.
Beginning at 2 p.m., guests will see the nearly 60 vehicle convoy parade to the Monster Mile Monument, followed by an exciting program featuring special guests, the Dover Air Force Base Commander and the Commander of the Delaware Air National Guard. There will be a flyover by Dover Air Force Base units and live musical performances, including the Dover Air Force Base Middle School choir performing the National Anthem and Armed Forces Medley.
“We encourage everyone to come out to greet the convoy as it goes through the city of Dover or meet the convoy at the east side of the Speedway. And we hope area veterans and their families will take advantage of the resources available at the Veterans Fair.
The Dover Motor Speedway and Bally’s Dover are located at 1131 N Dupont Highway in Dover. For information about the Veterans Fair, or how to participate, email INFO@GHHSociety.org or call 302-670-6158.
WREATHS ACROSS AMERICA RADIO A Voice for America’s Veterans
In partnership with At Ease Magazine, tune in on the first Friday of each month at 9:15 a.m. ET as we feature stories from their team doing great work to benefit veterans and military families.
Go Army! Beat Navy!
Story by Amie Foster, USMA 2008
What’s so great about the Army-Navy football game?
Well, during one’s fouryear experience, most activities are divided and based on specifics — year group, major, sport, company, etc. But the Army-Navy football game was a rallying experience for every cadet every December.
Unfortunately, during my time at West Point, we didn’t get an ArmyNavy football win. So sans a memory of victory, I mostly remember the fun of preparing to attend the game. The first step was finding out which friends could get away for the whole weekend
to Philly or Baltimore (back then, the location of the game alternated between the two locations) and who had to “boomerang” and take the academyprovided bus out and right back after the game.
The next most important piece of planning is what to wear. Funny, because externally we all wore the same thing — dress gray pants, black leather gloves, low quarter shoes, a cap and the iconic (yet not particularly warm) long overcoat. What you didn’t see were the “silkie” tops, long johns, doubled up socks and strategically stuffed hand warmers… And we still were freezing. As with most experiences at West Point, just because I wasn’t comfortable, didn’t mean I didn’t have fun.
Go Army! Beat Navy!
Go Navy! Beat Army!
Story by Katie Melynn, USNA 2008
These words ring out through the halls of Bancroft Hall, the massive dorm at the U.S. Naval Academy, all year. But during the week leading up to the Army-Navy football game, they take on a life of their own.
When I was a plebe “chopping” through the halls (which mostly meant jogging as fast as I could to avoid being stopped by an upperclassman to get quizzed on professional knowledge, the daily menu, or any other number of facts we had to have memorized), I looked forward to Army-Navy just like everyone else. But certain traditions had me worried — mostly the dreaded “Beat Army” concoction made by upperclassmen at lunch out of whatever
ingredients were closest on hand. Pickle juice, chocolate pudding, mayonnaise and a few mystery additions that would make it truly unique. And always a generous amount of hot sauce.
The week began with pranks pulled on Academy leadership, middle-ofthe-night adventures to hang “Go Navy” signs from the roofs of academic buildings, and the lunchtime “Beat Army.” Chugging my own glass alongside my classmates, I was grateful that our squad leader had a gentler sense of humor and mixed up a nice batch of chocolate milk instead. We downed the milk, slammed our empty glasses on the table, and yelled “Beat Army” at the top of our lungs. At the game that weekend, that’s exactly what we did.
Go Navy! Beat Army!
Brie’s corner
German castles
By Brie Burgett
Stuttgart, Germany, known for its vibrant cultural scene and picturesque landscapes, is also surrounded by numerous beautiful and historical castles, each offering a unique glimpse into the region’s rich past. Within an hour’s drive of the city, you’ll find several enchanting castles, from opulent royal residences to medieval fortresses. Whether you’re a history enthusiast, architecture lover or simply looking for a charming day trip, these castles are sure to captivate.
1. Schloss Solitude
Distance: ~20 minutes from Stuttgart
History: Built between 1764 and 1769, Schloss Solitude is a Rococo masterpiece commissioned by Duke Carl Eugen of Württemberg. The palace was intended as a hunting lodge and a place of retreat, embodying the duke’s love for art and nature. Its location offers breathtaking views of the surrounding countryside, including the Solitude Allee, a historic route connecting it to Ludwigsburg Palace.
Events: Today, Schloss Solitude hosts art exhibitions, classical music concerts and guided tours. The Schloss Solitude Academy is also based here, fostering a creative atmosphere for artists and scholars.
History: Known as the “Versailles of Swabia,” this Baroque palace is one of the largest in Germany. Built in the early 18th century by Duke Eberhard Ludwig, it served as the royal residence of the Dukes of Württemberg. Its sprawling gardens, influenced by both French and English styles, are a highlight.
Events: Ludwigsburg Palace is famed for its annual Pumpkin Festival in the fall, showcasing intricate pumpkin sculptures and delicious seasonal treats. The palace also hosts classical concerts, theatrical performances and the Ludwigsburg Palace Festival.
3. Burg Hohenzollern
Distance: ~50 minutes from Stuttgart
History: Perched atop Mount Hohenzollern, this neo-Gothic castle is the ancestral seat of the Hohenzollern dynasty, one of Germany’s most influential noble families. The current structure, completed in the mid-19th century, reflects a romanticized vision of a medieval castle, with stunning views of the Swabian Alps.Events: Burg Hohenzollern is a yearround attraction, offering guided tours, seasonal markets, and medieval festivals. Its Christmas market, set against the castle’s illuminated backdrop and serving up hot gluhwein, is particularly magical!
4. Schloss Lichtenstein
Distance: ~1 hour from Stuttgart
History: Known as the “Fairy Tale Castle of Württemberg,” Schloss Lichtenstein was inspired by Wilhelm Hauff’s 1826
novel Lichtenstein. Built in the mid-19th century, it stands dramatically on a rocky cliff, blending neo-Gothic architecture with its natural surroundings.
Events: Visitors can explore its richly decorated rooms on guided tours. The castle frequently hosts medieval reenactments and themed events, adding a touch of historical immersion.
5. Schloss Weikersheim
Distance: ~1 hour from Stuttgart
History: This Renaissance palace, built in the late 16th century, was the residence of the Counts of Hohenlohe. Its elegant interiors, well-preserved gardens, and ornamental fountain make it a must-visit for those seeking a tranquil escape.
Events: Schloss Weikersheim is a cultural hub, hosting openair concerts, theater performances, and workshops. Its garden is particularly popular during spring and summer festivals.
6. Schloss Kirchheim
Distance: ~35 minutes from StuttgartHistory: Built in the 16th century as a defensive fortress, Schloss Kirchheim later became a residence for the widowed duchesses of Württemberg. Its Renaissance architecture is both functional and ornate, with charming courtyards and gardens.Events: The castle hosts art exhibitions, historical lectures and familyfriendly events. Seasonal highlights include its Christmas market and summer open-air theater.
Many of these castles offer guided tours in English, so be sure to check their schedules in advance. Additionally, consider visiting during a special event to experience the castles at their most vibrant.
After U.S. Army veteran Jake Norotsky’s deployment to Iraq, his post-traumatic stress (PTSD) was so severe he considered suicide. After he registered for Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP), he realized that other veterans shared similar experiences and that he was not alone. Today, Jake has a new mission: to connect with audiences around the nation by sharing his story.
When you pledge your Combined Federal Campaign donation to WWP, you will help provide injured veterans and their families access to life-changing programs and services to help them reach their highest ambition. Visit GiveCFC.org or scan the QR code to make your pledge today.
WOUNDED
Navy retirees give back in Ginter Garden
In her Navy career, as a comptroller, Lorrie Lincoln tallied numbers. Today she tallies ribbons, tree ornaments, and thousands of strands of holiday lights. Her husband Bob, also a Navy veteran, has transferred his warship engineering skills to making chicken wire light forms.
This Richmond-area couple spends much of their time volunteering at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, along with 436 others who in 2023 contributed 39,199 hours. The Lincolns are behind-the-scenes stalwarts for the Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights, an annual winter holiday display of over one million lights, including 110 trees wrapped with lights, throughout many of the garden’s 50 acres.
USA Today named Ginter Garden’s 2023 show, sponsored by Dominion Energy for 25 years, the number one botanical garden holiday light show in the United States. Preparing and installing 57 miles of light strands involved 243 volunteers who contributed 10,211 hours from March 1, 2023, through February 29, 2024. They installed 147,700 individual light bulbs or 14 miles of lights in trees alone. Putting up the lights takes around two months.
Supply management
Once the GardenFest supervisor chooses a theme and develops a masterplan, a joint staff-volunteer committee decides on the forms to display the lights, choosing some new ones every year. They identify sites for lights on trees, bushes and the ground.
Like an experienced archivist, Lorrie can rattle off all the needed supplies, steps involved, quantities on hand, quantities needed and shelves and boxes required, from silk flowers to extension cords. Constantly number-crunching, she offers that one crate holds 40 strings of lights.
Volunteers systematically test and methodically store the lights.
“When you put those lights up, they have to work,” Bob stressed. “The person placing them on the tree could be 90 feet in the air (without spikes so no trees are harmed) and if that string of lights doesn’t work or it’s the wrong color, that’s a problem. We have to prep all of these lights and make sure all one million of them work properly.”
Lorrie supervises volunteers who inventory and store
each ornament by type, number, size, and provenance, plus thousands of decorations by color, like two file cabinets of ribbons sorted by bronze, pink, orange and red. They bring order to dry plant materials.
Throughout the year, Lorrie also conducts walks in the garden focused on, for example, trees, butterflies, garden history, pollinators and kids’ interests. She helps staff plant sales and other garden events. She’s swept sand and she’s even made mud pies in the children’s garden. In 2023, she clocked 334 volunteer hours.
Artful
lighting
Bob makes forms or shapes to support the holiday lights year-round. He often starts shaping fencing wire for a shell which takes about six hours. Others add chicken wire over the shape and others add the lights. In 2023, Bob created the shapes of a cardinal (1,750 lights), bluebird (1,600 lights), and hummingbird (850 lights), each approximately 12 times its actual life size, about the size of a person.
These teams have also created bees, lily pads, mushrooms, butterflies, a caterpillar, a giraffe, even the Pied Piper. They’ve made battery-powered, floating ducks. Two show-stoppers every year are an 800-pound Pegasus light form, which takes six people to move, and a 15-footlong, six-foot-tall royal blue and green peacock with a 25foot tail. The peacock sparkles with 3,150 lights.
Bob reshaped a former shrimp into a six-foot tall squirrel with a nut and then when the squirrel’s “life” ended, he made it into a rabbit. To make Bob Ross’s Afro hair style, he took some white lights home and colored each bulb
Story and photos by Glenda C. Booth
The Ginter Garden conservatory and June blooms.
with a brown sharpie. (Bob Ross hosted a PBS show, “The Joy of Painting.”)
The next year, the Afro became the head of a hummingbird. At the festival, Bob also makes s’mores at the firepit and leads behind-the-scenes tours of GardenFest preparations.
He works with a group self-described as “The Geezers” whose ages span 25 years. They fix objects that arrive broken, build display racks, some out of recycled pallets, and they made an earring rack out of an old shutter. They also build planting benches and raised beds. In 2023, Bob gave 170 hours to the garden.
Navy life
Lorrie started Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island in 1978 and finished in 1979. There she met Bob, but she quickly adds, given their assignments, in their first eight years of marriage, they got together one month out of the year on average because they were stationed on different sides of the country.
After OCS, she was a military support officer in Pensacola and handled personnel issues, like making job assignments and issuing chow passes for the cafeteria. In her 16-year Navy career, she was an administrative officer and comptroller.
She was stationed in San Diego, California, twice, then in Washington, D. C., in the Navy Military Personnel Command and then was a comptroller for the Navy’s drug and alcohol program. She was also a comptroller in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, handling financial management. Her last tour was in Richmond, Va., where she worked in recruitment and retired as a lieutenant commander.
Bob was a surface warfare officer, mostly an engineer
in the Navy for eight years. He trained at Naval Air Station Oceana Dam Neck Annex, and Treasure Island and San Diego, California. He commissioned the USS Fife and then worked on the USS Belleau Wood for two years, with sea tours to Korea, Thailand, Australia and the Philippines. He also did dry dock maintenance at Long Beach, Calif. After leaving the Navy, he worked for defense contractor ISA on Spruance class destroyers. He also helped update a supply chain system for the Naval Sea Systems Command.
From warships to wire forms is quite a leap. Why does he spend his time on “chicken wire art”? Bob said, when many people retire, they lose their human contacts. Their social circle shrinks.
“You need something larger,” he said. “When it comes right down to it, the most important contribution that my volunteering makes is creating something that causes other people’s lives to be better.
Bob and the cardinal that he and a team made for the 2023 GardenFest.
The peacock is in place for the GardenFest.
Lorrie in the storage room, organizing gold magnolia leaves and more.
“When I am conversing with guests during GardenFest while working the warming fire, I get a chance to see people’s reactions to the results of all of our efforts. I see so many people whose evenings, holidays and lives are just a little bit better because they came to see what we created for them. In the end, I get many things from being a volunteer, but it is what little I can give to the audience that matters most.”
For Lorrie, volunteering at Ginter Garden gives her a sense of purpose, a sense of identity and personal learning and growth.
“I believe in the beauty of this place and educating folks about the importance of nature and the serenity it brings to all,” she said. ”How can I not love supporting this special place and sharing it with the public?”
She added that others there “are like a second family.” Bob got started when he was helping his sixth-grade daughter with a service project in the garden and he learned that managers wanted to have the one-million light show. He immediately signed up.
“All you have to do is have an idea and do it until it comes out, until it’s done.”
The daughter is now an adult, also living in Richmond. Their son lives in Fredericksburg, Va., and they have three grandchildren.
Is there a connection between their Navy experience and their volunteer work today?
“The military gives you structure, discipline,” Bob said. “You learn that you can do anything you set your mind to,” Lorrie said.
Information
The 2024-2025 GardenFest will be from mid-November to early January. Over 135,600 people attended the festival in 2023-2024. Visit https://www.lewisginter.org/.
Lorrie leads walks in the garden.
Lorrie identifies many plants, like these carnivorous pitcher plants.
Lorrie and other volunteers organize decorations galore.
Operation Homefront provides holiday cheer for the military community
back to school season, or a holiday celebration. Operation Homefront meets the needs of the military community to make these special celebrations unique.
Time away from family during long deployments. PCS moves every few years. Geographic separation from extended family. The military community is familiar with all of these situations, having lived through them every few years as they pack up and move on the orders of Uncle Sam.
Operation Homefront is there to provide a sense of community and camaraderie for military members, Veterans, and their families.
Support during life’s meaningful moments
Often separated by distance from extended family, many military members and their families have to get creative to mark monumental life events like a new baby,
“Watch for this in your area,” Katie Rivera, an Operation Homefront Senior Manager with the Critical Assistance Program, said. “This is part of our recurring family support. We bring these back each year and multiple times each year.”
Initiatives include Star Spangled Baby Showers, the Back-to-School Brigade and Holiday Meals.
“We’re very honored to be able to help those families as a way of helping them financially but as importantly to be able to say thank you and express our gratitude,” said Scott Arcuri, who is the vice president of field operations.
Star Spangled baby showers bring together as many as 200 new moms and moms-to-be who might not get to celebrate the arrival of a new baby in person with family
Story by Katie Melynn
and friends. Recently, moms gathered in the Baltimore Ravens’ locker room for a one-of-a-kind baby shower complete with tiny Ravens jerseys, black and purple decor and refreshments.
Other Operation Homefront events include the Backto-School Brigade, which packs and delivers backpacks of school supplies every fall. Military-affiliated students can receive a backpack with paper, pencils and other necessities to start the school year strong. Since the summer is a common time for military families to move
to a new duty station, taking the responsibility of getting ready for school off their shoulders is a way to help.
Military members, Veterans and their families can sign up to receive a complete meal kit to ring in the winter holiday season. Some locations provide gift cards to local grocery stores, while others are able to hand out meal kits complete with fresh fruits and vegetables, a turkey and sides.
Operation Homefront has donated more than 580,000 backpacks since the Back-to-School Brigade started in 2008. Since the holiday meal program began in 2010, Operation Homefront has served over 200,000 military families just from meals alone. Arcuri estimates that families saved more than $10 million in holiday expenses between meals and toy drives.
“We try and target a lot of these recurring family support programs around those times of year that are most financially stressful for our military members,” Arcuri said. “We can provide that little bit of relief for them at back-to-school time. The holidays can be very stressful, financial and otherwise, so we try to help by freeing up some of their other money to spend on other things.”
Without the burden of school supplies, holiday meals away from family, or putting together a baby shower from afar, military families are better able to meet the challenges unique to this lifestyle.
Resources to help families thrive
Operation Homefront recognizes that people need help with everyday expenses as well as during special times of year. When members of the military experience financial hardship, Operation Homefront has programs to help.
The Critical Assistance Program provides financial assistance to pay rent or mortgage payments, help with utilities, and provide funds for home repairs and maintenance. Transitional Housing for Veterans is available for up to two or three years for those working to get out of debt, save up for a downpayment or security
deposit and get back on their feet financially.
“We help military families thrive, not just struggle to survive in the communities they have worked so hard to protect,” Rivera said.
Food assistance and vision assistance is available for active duty military between the ranks of E1 and E6. For deployed service members and those in the pre-deployment or post-deployment windows, special assistance to provide financial assistance is available. Veterans are also eligible to apply for select programs, including home repairs in partnership with the Home Depot Foundation.
Generous volunteers and partners are crucial to the success of the Operation Homefront programs. Corporate partners include the Bob and Dolores Hope Foundation, Chobani, Food Lion and Proctor & Gamble.
“It’s a way for us to say thank you,” Arcuri said. “We may not be able to meet every need but every little bit that we can do is helpful, frees up some financial stress.”
You can learn more about Operation Homefront, including how to sign up for their programs as well as how to volunteer and support at www.operationhomefront.org.
Bear Brigade: A cuddly companion to calm the tide for military families
Story by Jake Russell Photos courtesy of NFCU
Many of us remember the restless childhood nights where the only possible solution was to get up and sneakily crawl into the warmth and comfort of our parents’ arms in their much more comfortable bed. Sometimes, the only way to ease out of that luxury was to cuddle up with a stuffed animal of some sort.
However, the unfortunate reality is that not every child has that luxury to begin with, and those times are even more daunting for children of veterans where the distance just makes it amplified.
This past May, Navy Federal Credit Union and Build-ABear Workshop synthesized a beautiful partnership to do whatever they can to mediate that nightmare.
In celebration of Military Appreciation Month, the two launched the first annual Bear Brigade program. Families located near the San Diego, California, and Tacoma,
Washington, areas had the opportunity to build and dress a bear for free.
“Military Appreciation Month is dedicated to thanking the military and their families,” Cindy Williamson, vice president of the NFCU Tidewater Region, said. “When thinking of ideas on how to give back, we identified Build-A-Bear as an iconic partner that families could do something special that’s personal. There’s a process behind it — they can choose their bear or animal, they can choose their uniform, and when the customization is done, their mom or dad is right there with them throughout the process before they’re deployed.”
The highlight was undoubtedly the chance to participate in the “heart ceremony” and use “Build-A-Sound” technology; veterans will be able to record their own voices as sweet messages to insert into the bear so it feels as if they’re still united and with them, no matter the distance.
“As someone with a husband that served in the Navy, I can empathize with the separation being difficult,” Williamson said. “The technology makes it easier for
children if they can hear their mother or father’s voices on the nights where they’re apart. I’ve heard special stories where they hear their parents’ voices and it’s reassuring and comforting for the children.”
San Diego and Tacoma are both cities with lively military communities with many active duty service members. While quality time with them in childhood may be disrupted, and there’s no equivalent replacement, the Bear Brigade is a unique and serviceable chance to keep that connection alive in what is hopefully the first installment of many more to come.
“The events we hosted in San Diego and Washington are all about community,” Wes Shaw, a corporate communications strategist for Navy Federal, said. “It’s framed for the children and the parents that are deploying to create a special memory before they’re gone. There are a
lot of people that attract people to the event because of the opportunity to build the bear at no cost. It’s a personalized memento and an experience that Build-A-Bear creates and is all about.”
With over 100 bears made in San Diego and over 200 in Tacoma, this was considered a huge success.
“With Navy Federal, we’re always looking to give back to supporting the community and the families who are the heartbeat of who we are,” Williamson said. “In Tidewater, in our branches we have over 150 military family members that truly understand and empathize with those that are serving. It’s such a great feeling reaching out to those children and supporting them.”
The warm embrace of a mother or father is a priceless treasure, but a warm snuggle of a bear, a verbal affirmation and a memory of a lifetime can calm the tide until next time.
Nature heals, veterans learn
Story and photos by Glenda C. Booth
the Wild
Ed Acevedo says that working with horses “makes him feel good.” For Sage Raintree, a walk in the woods boosts his spirits.
“Spending time in and around nature is the single most important first step to improving both human and planetary health,” Park Rx America’s website — an organization that promotes what some call “nature therapy” — reads.
Increasingly, medical providers are “prescribing nature,” encouraging people of all ages to spend more time outdoors to improve their mental and physical health. Back in the early 1980s, the Forest Agency of Japan advised people to take walks in the woods, a practice called “forest bathing” or shinrin-yoku. Studies link nature to human health benefits like less heart disease, hypertension, depression, anxiety and attention disorders; boosts to the immune system; increased energy; and improved sleep.
Most Americans spend 87 percent of their time indoors, inside buildings, and six percent of their time in an enclosed vehicle, on average, according to the National Human Activity Pattern Survey. That means they spend very little time in nature.
“Nature is not only nice to have, but it’s a have-to-have for physical health and cognitive function,” argued Jim Robbins in a Yale Environment 360 article.
“Being in nature while working through trauma can help veterans handle challenging life situations and improve their sense of well-being. . . Studies show that getting outside can help retired service members feel better,” wrote Sarah Hubbart for the National Environmental Education Foundation.
NEEF, in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service, is funding 10 projects, titled “Veterans and Nature: Enhancing Well-being through Outdoor Experiences.”
The grants’ goal is to help veterans access the physical and mental health benefits of nature through outdoor activities on public lands. The projects, funded at up to $10,000 each, seek to engage Black and Indigenous veterans, veterans of color, as well as gender diverse and veterans with disabilities.
Greenwell Foundation
At Hollywood, Maryland’s 596-acre Greenwell State Park on the Patuxent River, veterans are finding healing in kayaking, fishing, guided hikes and equine activities.
Acevedo, a Navy veteran, and Chris Davies, an Army veteran, are learning to work with horses in what some call “equestrian therapy,” to care for, groom, lead and ride horses. At the park’s farm, visitors can warm up to eight horses, two goats and one potbelly pig, said Maria McDonald, who is the executive director of the Greenwell Foundation which manages the park’s programs.
“Being around horses puts a smile on my face,” Acevedo, who started in 2023, said.
Once or twice a week, he feeds the horses, goats and the pig and is now learning to ride horses.
“I always wanted to get close to horses,” Acevedo said as he rubbed a warmblood horse named Carmen. “It relaxes me. When I’m around animals, everything else goes away. Here I can pet a beautiful animal.”
Additional photos by Veterans in
Army veteran Chris Davies is learning how to lead a horse.
Chris Davies feeding Missy, a quarterhorse at Maryland’s Greenwell State Park
It’s obvious that Carmen is comfortable around Acevedo too. When she sees him with a bucket, she paces and groans in anticipation as he approaches.
Acevedo, now retired, was an aircraft electrician at the Naval Test Pilot School at Patuxent Station.
“They make me forget the rest of the world,” Davies said, noting he did not grow up with horses.
“It calms me down,” Davies said while grooming a quarter horse named Missy. “I feel euphoric. It’s really nice, like scratching a dog’s belly, but it’s a big dog. For those going through trauma, grooming a horse centers them.”
“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.”
— John Muir
In the Army, Davies worked in military policing for two years of active duty at Fort Bragg and then 10 years as a reservist. He said he can “feel the vibes” with horses.
Melisa Kennedy, Greenwell’s equestrian director, explained that if a horse’s ears are up and forward, “she’s happy; if back, unhappy. If her tail is swishing, she’s aggravated. Horses give nonjudgmental feedback. It’s just the veterans and the horse. There’s a magical power.”
The Greenwell Foundation is a nonprofit that offers ten miles of trails for guided hikes in the park and promotes emotional and social well-being through outdoor activities and retreats for veterans and others for free.
“The Equestrian Program at Greenwell Foundation begins and ends with trust,” McDonald said. “Trust
between the horses and veterans, and trust between the veterans and staff at Greenwell to bring mutual respect to all we do together. We’re here to help.”
McDonald said they anticipate serving 60 veterans with these programs in 2025 and their pilot programs this year will reach 25-30 veterans.
Veterans in the Wild
In Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, Veterans in the Wild, a free program of the nonprofit called ‘This Is My Quest’ helps veterans transition to civilian life through nature-based activities, including hiking, kayaking, fishing, wildlife observation and guided nature walks in state parks. Veterans may learn outdoor skills by going quail hunting or fishing, doing outdoor cooking, foraging for food, and harvesting honey from beehives, for example. They can also participate in wellness workshops on mental health and learn outdoor survival skills.
Volunteers have helped ex-military people get to their health care clinic and they got a chair lift for one veteran who lived in a two-story house.
Kayla Yoder, who grew up in a military family, got involved because “it’s an amazing cause.” She lost a cousin in Iraq and two of her close friends committed suicide after returning from Iraq. She had to do something constructive after “seeing their struggle and not asking for help.”
The Veterans in the Wild slogan is “you are never alone.”
“We want to get veterans acquainted with other veterans, to have other people to talk to and to form bonds,” Yoder said.
Gardening with youngsters
At Washington, D. C.’s National Arboretum, veterans are helping with a children’s garden, learning urban
Pheasant hunt Chris Miller, Chad Osgood Photo Credit Phoebe Frear
farming, distributing produce to low-income families and learning about forest bathing.
The one-acre youth garden is part of the 450-acre arboretum, which Dr. Richard Olsen, the director, said is a “hidden treasure,” largely unchanged since its origin in 1927. Noting that the arboretum gets 700,000 visitors a year, he told a National Public Lands Day gathering on Sept. 28, “we need healthy communities. Urban greenspace is important to our mental health.”
Veterans work with youngsters to help put in plants and demonstrate how to grow food, like tomatoes, onions, okra, corn, and fig and plum trees.
“Here youngsters can get dirt under their nails and develop a lifetime of healthy living,” Olsen said.
Army veteran and Rockville, Maryland, resident Sage Raindancer leads forest bathing walks at the arboretum and at Kenilworth Gardens, also in Washington.
“My fallback was walking in the woods,” he said about how he coped with post-traumatic stress disorder. “A small green space is a place of solace.”
Raindancer served in the Army Reserves from 1991 to 1999 and recognizes that “veterans have special needs.” To him, by doing “forest therapy,” people can connect with nature and “have a dialog with nature. We’re so disconnected. We need to recognize that we are part of nature.”
NEEF is funding the projects because they recognize the “restorative aspect of nature,” explained Kelly Burnett, NEEF’s Program Director of Conservation. To learn about the ten projects, all on public lands, visit https://www.neefusa.org/news/neef-announcesawardees-2024-2025-veterans-and-nature-grant.
The first protectors of federal park lands
At a Sept. 28 National Public Lands Day event at the National Arboretum, representatives of the Buffalo Soldiers symbolized the importance of protecting public lands when they presented the colors in their traditional uniforms.
In 1866, Congress authorized the U.S. Army to create six African American regiments, later consolidated into four. The soldiers served in the western United States for the next 20 years and were colloquially called, “Buffalo Soldiers.” They became caretakers of protected federal land, what eventually became Yosemite, Sequoia and part of Kings Canyon national parks, then administered by the Army. The Buffalo Soldiers protected the parks from illegal grazing, poaching, timber thefts and wildfires.
“Although the pay was low, only $13 a month, many African Americans enlisted because they could earn more and be treated with more dignity than they often received in civilian life,” noted the National Park Service’s website.
Veteran Sage Raindancer leads forest bathing walks in the Washington, D. C., area
Helping put in plants at the Washington Youth Garden at the National Arboretum
This Is My Quest, https://www.thisismyquest.org/ National Arboretum, https://www.usna.usda.gov/ National Environmental Education Foundation, www.neefusa.org
A new version of tic-tac-toe for the holidays
Story by Lt. Col. Paul McCullough III
Once again, the holidays are upon us. For many people, rather than being filled with joy, the holidays represent a difficult time of year that they just want to “get through.” Some friends I know lost close family members during this time and the holidays have become a painful reminder of that loss.
Other people struggle with feelings of loneliness or regret, taking much of the joy out of their holiday season. Many are fortunate enough to have their family and friends, but have serious financial difficulties, making it very challenging for them to partake in many of the common holiday traditions. In spite of how heart wrenching these situations can be, I believe that a new version of Tic-Tac-Toe can help all of us have a better holiday season.
Unlike the classic version of this game you are accustomed to, and have probably played for years, I’m advocating for a model of Tic-Tac-Toe that is based on community and fellowship. Picture the traditional gameboard of nine boxes to represent your life. You are the center square.
As we start to fill in the middle row of the game board, think about the two people in the world that you are closest to, people that you can rely on to walk through the difficult circumstances of life with you. For me, this line is occupied by my spouse and my best friend of 35 years. If the holidays make you sad for any reason, reach out to your two people and ask them for help.
In the military, we often practice a concept called having a battle buddy, someone who can carry you if you get injured in combat. Sometimes we need a person to our left and to our right, who can help pick us up when we are down and can’t continue on our own.
Galatians 6:2 affirms this sentiment: “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.” Perhaps, you feel like you can walk on your own, but you’re not sure where you are going. You’ve lost the motivation in your life and you need someone to help point you in the right direction and get you back on track. This is the beauty of the top line of our gameboard. This row should be filled with three people you can turn to for a lis-
Lt. Col. (Rev.) Paul McCullough, U.S. Army retired, is president of the Association of the U.S. Army’s Penn & Franklin-Greater Philadelphia Chapter and an Army Reserve Ambassador from Pennsylvania. He served 20 years in the Army, retiring in 2018 as deputy director for supplier operations, Defense Logistics Agency. He deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005, and in 2017 as commander of the DLA Support Team-Kuwait. He holds a doctorate in business administration from Walden University.
tening ear and wise counsel, and arguably, should be people who have already achieved some of the things you want to do in life.
Another way of saying this is that your top line should be filled with people you consider to be mentors. None of us have life completely figured out. There is always someone doing better than you. The holidays are often a contemplative time, where we give thanks for what we have, but also think about the new year and the promise of hope that it brings. The mentors in our life can help us to set challenging goals, to set a clear path and feel a new sense of purpose for our lives.
We read about this kind of relationship in Hebrews 10:24-25 where it states, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, but encouraging one another”. Finally, we have the extremely important bottom row. This line’s position does not denote lesser worth, but rather suggests to us the value of pouring into other people. We may have our own issues, but there are still people in life who look up to us as their own mentors. These three people may be our children, our coworkers or other people in our community and family. What’s important is not how you know them, but how you can help them grow. I’ve had the great fortune to mentor several people in my life, and it is a very fulfilling experience to watch people develop and thrive because of your assistance.
This practice of mentorship is highlighted in Titus 2:7-8 which reads, “In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned...”
Life is hard, no doubt. However, when we practice this model of tic-tac-toe, we gain strength from community and fellowship. This year, fill your board and fill your life with joy.
The year 2025 is set to be a wonderful year full of incredible opportunities for At Ease to celebrate with its readers. In 1775, three branches of our military were established, meaning next year will be the 250th birthday for the Army, Navy and Marine Corps.
In June, we will focus on the Army’s 250th; in October, we will celebrate the Navy’s 250th; and, in November, we will celebrate the Marine Corps’ 250th. We will have stops along the way for celebrations of the Coast Guard in August and the Air Force in September, which will include a robust guide for the Joint Base Air Show, which last occurred in 2022 to celeebrate the Air Force’s 75th birthday.
Another milestone for 2025 is the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima, which we will recognize in our February edition.
It is going to be a great year for At Ease to celebrate, and we encourage you to share your stories with us. Send an email to ewohlenhaus@dcmilitary.com with your stories about your branch of service or what specifically you are celebrating in 2025. See you next year!
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