Taking Action During PTSD Awareness Month
Army Veterans of Bravo Company 2-508 share a history marked by loss, trauma, and bonds that run deeper than can be put into words. These brave heroes took losses from combat during deployment and again upon returning home when more members lost their lives to a different war: Veteran suicide.
It was at a funeral for a member of B Co 2-508 who died by suicide, where the idea for the Operation Resilience (OpRes) program was born.
This innovative program reunites military units to foster peer support and connection through the bond of brotherhood. OpRes offers a powerful solution to combat PTSD and Veteran suicide, ultimately helping Veterans to understand it’s okay to not be okay.
June is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Awareness Month. PTSD can leave Veterans feeling isolated, lost, and struggling to cope, and is a significant contributing factor in the Veteran suicide crisis.
To combat this crisis, the Independence Fund held the first Operation Resilience retreat in 2019 by bringing 100 members of B Co 2-508 together. Now, the program is bringing units back, repeatedly, to ensure these Veterans receive continued support and that their bond remains strong, since PTSD is a lifelong battle.
“Just because life has gotten in the way doesn’t mean that we’re not still brothers; doesn’t mean we aren’t still a family; doesn’t mean we don’t have these shared experiences. We should be able to talk to each other and this helps.”
Your Support Matters
The Independence Fund absorbs the full cost of the OpRes retreat – the Veterans pay nothing out of pocket to attend. We can only make events like this possible with the help of our proud supporters like you.
Help us raise $100,000 to facilitate the next OpRes retreat!
