Why is there a need?
• Mental and physical injuries sustained during service causing veterans to experience increased stress, depression, feelings of loneliness and isolation, substance abuse, unemployment, domestic abuse and overall poor quality of life.
• The Veterans Administration is overwhelmed and other resources that aid in recovery are underutilized, inadequate, and sometimes ineffective.
• Veterans often struggle upon returning home; depression, drug use, ... Read More
Why is there a need?
• Mental and physical injuries sustained during service causing veterans to experience increased stress, depression, feelings of loneliness and isolation, substance abuse, unemployment, domestic abuse and overall poor quality of life.
• The Veterans Administration is overwhelmed and other resources that aid in recovery are underutilized, inadequate, and sometimes ineffective.
• Veterans often struggle upon returning home; depression, drug use, incarceration and homelessness plague many. Over 22 veterans kill themselves each day and many others turn to substance abuse and violence to cope with the overwhelming difficulties faced after service.
How we started:
Instead of allowing negative statistics to overwhelm them, Army veterans Nick Watson and Stacy Bare decided to do something. Inspired by their own experiences with the healing power of nature, Bare and Watson launched Veterans Expeditions (VetEx) in spring 2010. VetEx is a veteran run, veteran led nonprofit that uses wilderness challenges to connect veterans, create community, build self-esteem and raise awareness about the issues facing veterans as they transition back to civilian life.
Since its inception, VetEx has served over 2000 veterans on 200 trips that include short snowshoes, multiday river trips, ice climbing outings and serious expeditions including climbs of Mt. Rainier and a successful summit of Denali, North America’s highest peak. Through the community created by VetEx, some are finding a different way. In 2014, National Geographic named Watson and Bare ‘Adventurers of the Year’ for their work as community builders. In 2017, the outdoor industry honored VetEx as the winner of the Outdoor Inspiration Awards, which celebrate those that inspire and encourage others to enjoy, participate in and support outdoor activities. VetEx continues to build on the momentum of these prestigious honors to increase its reach and grow its operations.
Our Goals:
1. Use the outdoors to create a trusting veteran community that not only exists during trips, but also extends beyond the outdoors to provide support to veterans in their home communities.
2. Create opportunities for employment in the outdoor industry.
3. Improve quality of life for veterans.
An Innovative Approach:
Since veterans typically avoid seeking assistance for post traumatic stress (PTS) and depression, innovative methods to assist with reintegration are necessary. VetEx utilizes an innovative approach that works because of the following components:
We are 100% Veteran run, veteran led. We allow for second service. We have a long term commitment to creating lasting change. We create a strong community. We create leaders. We take a “campfire therapy approach”. We are Inclusive.
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