HOV: Veterans Podcast

This is the final episode of the podcast. "Heart of a Volunteer: Veterans Podcast", what a hell of a run! As all things do, it must end. I'd like to thank everyone for being apart of this. The Veteran Co-hosts that came out of their comfort zones, dredged up old memories, reached other Veterans on a personal level, and gave the podcast class. Thank you. I know coming on the show wasn't easy sometimes, but the assistance that you gave, the example you set for others made it all worth it. The podcast will stay active for awhile, it will also be archived within a few of the platforms, so go back and listen to any episodes that you might have missed. No sponsors, just Veterans doing good works. Everyone stay safe, I'll see you on high ground. This is the final episode of "Heart of a Volunteer: Veterans Podcast". ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Seems as if the podcast is up and running again. Spent a little time away from the Lake House, just to get my head right. Wasn't much I could do here, so exercised some battlefield patience and now we are sitting right. On top of just taking my mental health into account, taking time away gave time for the new equipment to arrive, which is amazing. (Episode on that soon). Caught up with Zach Carpenter (S3E5) and we chatted about the changes going on here in Sherwood Shores while the clean up and rebuild happens. Still a lot that needs to be done, but compared to a month after the tornado this is beautiful. Zach and I both are looking at relocating, Zach to West Texas and myself to Belize, so we covered some of the reasoning behind that and what we are looking for in that next stage in life. Not only is Zach moving, but he has a baby boy on the way in late November, so making moves for the next chapter in his life, so good things going on out here in the world. Everyone stay safe and enjoy the holiday weekend. Till next time... ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Monday, 21 March, 2022 an EF2 Tornado brought heavy destruction as it ripped across the community known as "Sherwood Shores". Grayson County reported that 10 tornados had touched down. Across the entire state only one life was lost, Mrs. Viranda Rogers was a resident of Sherwood Shores, TX. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family and to the families of those injured. With no warning from sirens, this could've been much, much worse. Very blessed. Ways to help those in need can be found at: The United Way of Grayson County (www.unitedwaygrayson.org), for those that are looking to help, thank you! Continue listening folks, the studio and equipment are gone, but I'm going to keep things going. Maybe the source of my sanity is this podcast right now!!! Everyone stay safe and we'll talk to ya again.

Got to catch up with a Veteran who lives here at the lake, Zach Carpenter, and we soon became good friends. He took me out for a training session with his hunting dog "Bob". Zach has Bob trained as a birddog. I was amazed at just how dynamic they operated and wanted to know more. So a couple weeks later here we are. Zach talks us through his upbringing, his military service, and then he gets into dog selection. Zach is keen on the "German Short-hair Pointer" and talks about the training routine that he uses, ranging from Commands, Retrieval, Table Breaking, Field/Water Work, and Competitions. Zach has a way with dogs, he proved it here at my place with my pups. Zach spends a lot of time afield, so no surprise that he has seen Sasquatch, not once, but twice! Great conversation. Everyone stay safe and blessed out there. Subscribe to the show, share it and let me know what I can do to make it better. ©HOV2022 ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Welcome everyone to another episode here on HOV: Veterans Podcast, and I’m your host Chris. It’s been a while since I put out an episode, the Ride with Dan, USA roll up was the last one that I did. Up to that point it is all me, pure laziness and focused on other things. Easier things in some regard. But the past month I was deeply engaged, and that is what I going to talk about on todays episode. This is a Veterans Pod, so talking about Veterans and the areas that impact our lives and those around us is what we do. My Grandpa, 94yo WWII Marine Veteran, Merchant Marines before that, and newest inductee into the Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame. My Grandpa has filled this life up folks, not only with experiences, but with people. Not to get into my Grandpa’s medical history, he’s 94yo so you get it. On top of that, he fell going into church and fractured his femur right above the knee. He had his knee replaced a number of years ago, so that messed up the alignment of his hardware. This has made his knee unstable and a concern when living alone. Yes, my Grandpa lived alone til he was 94 years old. But getting up/down stairs, stopping falls without breaking something else is not something he can do alone anymore. Family got together to get a schedule around. 3 aunts, 2 uncles, jobs and medical issues Signed up on the duty roster for 30 days Learned a few things over this period that I’d like to share. 1) Duty & Obligation are over used Calling, number of cousins that aren’t able to just cut away, they may feel that they are not fulfilling a duty, but in the end its a calling, a draw to this person, to help steady them and ensure they are maintained. 2) Personal Perception in Stated Learning - we all have those moments where we “change”, the situation dictates that we become someone else. Some times it’s a date, location, but mostly its situations. Think about the idea of Monday’s, going to work after a long weekend of not resting at all. This develops a “state of mind/emotion” around this event. People can do this to us also. - My Grandpa had this hold on me. Like I said, he has been my best friend longer than anyone else. He directs me as if I was 15yo again, I snap to his directions like I did when I was young too. - There is nothing wrong with this, per say, when he passes, which we all will, there would have been a feeling of being lost, a great loss to me. - But walking behind the man who use to tower over me, looking over his head a full foot and holding my hand in a belt grabbing position changed my view of things. This also has nothing wrong attached, a progression that took many years, but one that had to happen at some point. Especially in the sense of mental and emotional health going forward. 3) Old Age Care - My Grandpa has it pretty good. He gets to stay at home, his family will make sure that he is taken care of and he’ll be good to go. The constant contact with my Aunts/Uncles during my time there made things all too clear for me. I’m going to either be in a Veterans Home or at the mercy of someone that I don’t know to care for me. Either way, I have a lot of work to do on my character. When I look at the situation, me without the ability to do for myself and someone taking care of me, I see only one thing that can make my situation better….a good character. These folks, primarily ladies, are giving their time to cover the cost of resources to propel their family to the next level. They are profiting by my demise. There is no need to confuse the facts there, others will profit in terms of a paycheck for taking care of me till I pass on. My level of character is the only thing that will make a difference at this stage of my journey. If you haven’t been to an Assistant Living Facility, you should go some time. It’s a good view of how things will be for you, kind of a “Ghost of Christmas Future” if you will. Christmas slang is creeping in this time of year. The bills that are passed that save money, but...

Caught up with the seven-time co-host on the podcast, Dan Hurd, to talk about the conclusion of his cycling journey across the lower 48 states for suicide awareness. During the episode we talk about the changes that have occurred during the three and half years that he's been out on the road. From the start, to the shift to riding to raise suicide awareness, the pandemic slow down, the accident in Arizona and 22k miles later, finishing what most thought he wasn't mentally prepared for or that his injuries were too great for him to ever ride a bike again. Dan's story isn't a new one, we hear people from all walks of life out there doing uncommon things, but as we listen to these challenges faced do we see ourselves at some degree and ask if we need a good ol' fashion deep challenge to get us to the next level? If not, we should be. So that is the challenge to you, take yourself deep on a personal level. Take a fascination in yourself, learn the little things and ask yourself questions. Get yourself involved in something that you know if going to change you, you're not meant to wither on the vine. There are a total of five episodes where Dan talks about his journey. Here they are: S1, Veterans Chat 18, 23 & 34, and S2, Veterans Chat 3. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Dr. Katie Kopp joins me for a second time on the podcast, this time we tackle suicide and turning our mental health around. Won't lie, had a really tough week. Someone who holds a place in my heart took his life, I haven't felt this level of loss in a very long time, so very fortunate to have Dr. Kopp available to come on and have a chat. Opening things right up, Katie asked me when suicide first effected me. I have to say, two hours later and I feel really good about opening up, sharing my feelings on it and having her there to help me sift through things. Each of us have a had experience that we have a hard time getting around, opening up about these sticking points is clutch. If you're listening to yourself and you're not healing, then you need someone to help you out. From the point of hopelessness, we talk about not being able to find a way out of our situation, life, and how suicide feels like the only option. How do we gain a footing here and pull ourselves back from the brink? 1) Take care of your personal hygiene and stay healthy. 2) Get a Veteran or 100 in YOUR LIFE! You are either helping or being helped, either way its a win-win for everyone. Everyone needs someone to call them out. This isn't a daily thing here, this is a check-in, get on in there. 3) Know yourself and seek self-improvement. Find out and understand what makes you who you are. Dive deep into what is bothering you, break it up into pieces and understand those little chunks. Stay in the zone of understanding it, gain full knowledge and understanding, move to the next chunk. 4) Don't get comfortable, our demons are waiting...keep your head on a swivel and keep moving! 5) Normalizing Trauma means that you have understanding of what makes you tick. Now its time to make it normal, this trauma is apart of you, your personality will always have elements of this trauma. Breaking the cycle of silence, opening up and getting sound advice from those you trust. 6) Build Compassion & Empathy for yourself, you've been through a lot, take credit for it. If it makes you sad then imagine how others feel, you showing that this too effects you, that is having compassion and empathy. This also helps others to normalize their trauma. A damn win-win again. Everyone take it easy out there. Reach out to someone and have a meaningful conversation about life. Reach out to Dr. Kopp if you have questions or need guidance on getting plugged into a counselor, katiekopp@gmail.com. Any Veteran that would like to come on and have a chat on the show, email: hovpodcast7@yahoo.com. Let's get it done. Stay safe and blessed! HOV©2021 ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Through the course of life we find ourselves, on many occasions, barely holding on to the things we value and put our works into. These many years of life have taught me, in brutal ways sometimes, that change is all around us. We struggle, which is our nature as humans it seems, fighting against the current of life, wondering when we are going to catch a break. Well, that break will never happen, the moment and environment that made that work has passed. Change is all around us, we are in the eye of something that is in constant flux, this is unavoidable. Resistance to change causes us to be anchored to an old way, one that has passed its period of usefulness. In saying that, the podcast is adjusting to the change times and updating itself, so as to not swim against the current of life as a Veteran. The long standing episode, the Saga, is out. On paper this episode is amazing, Veterans Gold, but in reality this episode opens chapters of life, that for some produce setbacks. Much like the “war story” genre, if you’re not growing from it then it is holding you back from understanding it. War is not something we just do, war is lived - that lived part of life must be known to us, without the “fog of war” obscuring the truth. More to follow in regards to episodes. “Children of Fallen Patriots” is an amazing non-profit that provides “gap” assistance to Gold Star Children for college. This organization was founded in 2002 and has provided educational funds, scholarships and more to over 2000 Gold Star Scholars. This is an organization that I know we all can get behind. Reach out to the Gold Star Families you know and ask them if they have enrolled, free benefits, don’t let em go to waste. “Veterans Mental Health Series” will be out here in a couple of months, four episodes talking about “Our Mental Health” and how we can move up a couple of levels in owning it. Reach out if you’d like to come on the podcast for a chat, all are welcome. Till then, everyone stay safe, blessed and engaged. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Movement Monday has two guests that have been longtime friends, Joel Wood and Wendell Moore, on the series to discuss Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Their friendship spans decades before becoming involved in this movement with working together in government to starting a restaurant with friends to moving to different capitals, their bond was never broken and continues to stay strong. The words “incurable” and “untreatable” are words no parent or person wants to hear but that’s exactly...

Today’s co-host is Air Force Veteran Michael Minor here to discuss an organization within Garmin called GPS VETS. Let’s first Start with what is GPS? Its known as Global Positioning System and it’s a satellite-based navigation system made up of at least 24 satellites. GPS works in any weather conditions, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, with no subscription fees or setup charges. The U.S. Department of Defense originally put the satellites into orbit for military use, but they were...

Movement Monday has Sylvie D'Aoust on the series to talk about her Secrets from the Saddle. She shares parts of her past not often talked about related to mental health. Sylvie tells us about the hiccups along the way and how she overcame each obstacle. It just goes to show its never to late to share your story. Join the movement by sharing your story, remember its never to late! Ironically she is also the founder and host of the podcast series called Secrets from the Saddle where she talks...

JT Frank co-hosts Movement Monday to talk about Consequence of Habit podcast and new nonprofit organization. Listen how this Air Force Veteran changed and continues to change his life after years of struggles. Is it possible to kick whatever bad habit is holding you back? Sure and JT realized he needed better habits, including Self-acceptance one that many of us should work on. The habits he had restricted him until he analyzed them and made the changes one habit at a time. We talk about how...

William (Bill) Broadie passed from his earthly life to his eternal heavenly home on January 21, 2021, after a six-week battle against COVID-19. Bill was born February 26, 1948, in Ashland, KS, to Elmer (Raymond) and Leta (Luke) Broadie. Bill graduated from Ashland High School in 1966. He was a life-long resident of Ashland, KS, a fourth-generation cattleman, and a proud United States Marine. Bill loved being a cowboy. Stories of a young Bill working alongside his father and “helping” out on the ranch were frequently retold. One story often heard was of a very young Bill looking up at one of the cowboys and saying, “Do you want to have some fun?” At that moment, he spurred his Shetland pony, Dynamite Dan, as they went bucking through the middle of the herd “whoopin’ and a hollarin’” and scattering the entire herd after a full morning of gathering. Bill often said it was a good thing it took several hours to regather the cattle; otherwise his father would have killed him. Bill often told stories about growing up on the ranch as a kid. He had several mishaps, including being kicked or runover by cattle or getting bucked off his horse. The first aid administered to him by the cowboys were phrases like “I guess they won’t hurt you in football,” or “Get up it will make you tough,” or “It’s a long way from your heart.” These valuable lessons learned on the ranch of toughness, determination, perseverance, and hard work were reinforced as a Marine and carried him throughout his life. The next chapter in his life was set in motion when Bill enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. During Bill’s deployment to Viet Nam, he was wounded twice. The second one resulted in the amputation of his leg. To put it simply, his air evacuation did not go smoothly. As his good friend Rod Raso stated, “Who the hell else can get shot, dropped out of the helicopter that is supposed to be evacuating him, and still survive?” Bill spent six months in the Philadelphia Naval Hospital recovering from his injuries. He was awarded two Purple Heart Medals, National Defense Service Medal, Viet Nam Service Medal, and Presidential Unit Citation. He received an honorable medical discharge in 1968. Bill returned to Ashland and married his high school sweetheart, Linda Kaye Clark, on July 27, 1968. They enrolled at Fort Hays State University in Hays, KS, to pursue their educational goals and started their family with the birth of their son, William Barrett on June 8, 1970. Graduating from college, in the spring of 1971, they returned to Ashland to partner with his father & grandfather on the ranch. They gave birth to daughter, Amy Lynette on March 27, 1974. Bill’s determination for leading a full and independent life remained a focal point of his character. He resumed his normal activities of riding horses, roping, doctoring and taking care of cattle, as well as (reluctantly) learning to drive a tractor again, mastering all of these tasks with his wood leg. At one point, his prosthetist wanted to understand why he was breaking so many wood legs. After spending a couple of days on the ranch with Bill, he quickly understood and came up with a reinforced leg, designed to better withstand the cowboy life. Bill never used his disability as an excuse. He never complained about the hand he was dealt. He led by example and taught his children to get up, keep going, and work hard. If he felt that a pity party was carrying on too long, he would offer a spare leg for a kick in the butt to get you going. In 1988, Bill joined on with Superior Livestock Auction, a young company that was to revolutionize the cattle industry. Setting out to build a new career with Superior, he saw the benefit for both producers and livestock in this model of bringing the traditional cattle auction to satellite TV. As a representative for Superior Livestock Auction, his circle of business associates grew nationally. Bill personally marketed over 500,000 head of cattle over the course of 32...

Jacob Bowman joins the podcast today for a chat about his time as a Ranger Medic with 2nd Ranger Battalion, the challenges of post-service and the connection back to life that Ayahuasca gave to him. Not only is Jacob a Veteran, but he is also a Veteran Business Owner. He developed a CBD balm that jump started “Buzzed Bee Balm” with his Mother and a buddy he served with. The Lemon Grass balm is as solid as they come, I’d try that one. A few years ago, Jacob was invited to go down to Medellin, Columbia to take part in an Ayahuasca Ceremony through the non-profit “Heroic Hearts Project”. The scholarships that Heroic Hearts Project provides allow Veterans to go down and participate in the ceremonies. These retreats are not just thrown together, they are vetted by the CEO/Founder and others to insure the safety of the Veterans being sent down. Make sure to check out their website and if you’re a Veteran that thinks this is for them, reach out to them and start the process. Best of Luck! Once again, psychedelics are not a joke or a game. Serious advances in Veterans and others lives are being made by their usage. Get informed and support the advances of healing the souls and minds of those that stood shoulder-to-shoulder with us. Everyone is different, that knowledge leads to different forms of treatment to get them back to living amazing lives. Everyone Stay Safe & Blessed! HOV©2021 ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

This week we have Glen Bloomstrom cohosting the series to share with us, LivingWorks Education. Back on episode two of Movement Monday, I talked about a movement that I value very dearly and if you have followed my journey at any point through Ride with Dan USA or the nonprofit One Pedal At A Time Movement then you have heard me talk about LivingWorks Education. Livingworks is the world leading suicide intervention training organization and we believe suicide is preventable! I thought what...

Seth Rockwell, a Friend from the Road, joins us this week to chat about vanlife and the love for the great outdoors. At just 21 years old, he is living an amazing journey already full of adventures. Some of us at some point in life have had thoughts of traveling the country maybe the world in a similar fashion. For any number of reasons, we find ourselves on a different path. This does not mean you cannot fulfill that dream at some point though. If you enjoy life in some of its simplest...

Thomas Elpel of Green University connects with the Movement Monday series! Episode 7, I want to thank you for listening to this point! Tom was recently awarded writer’s digest’s first place in nonfiction for his natural history travelogue, “Five months on the Missouri river: paddling a dugout canoe”, a work that I am thankful to be featured in. Our guest partnered with Churchill Clark, the great-great-great-great grandson of Captain William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Together...

Singer and Songwriter, Jeffrey Steele, joins the series to discuss the love for music with the love for skateboarding. Stick around get comfortable and come jam out with us. Even if you are not a country music lover there are just some songs that we all hear at some point. Those songs that get the head bobbing, the feet moving and the emotions flowing. Those songs like Montgomery Gentry’s “My Town, Steve Holy’s “Brand New Girlfriend” and Rascal Flatts’ a band that transcends further than a...

Family ADDventures, Nicole Santiago, joins the Movement Monday series to discuss “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder” (ADHD). Keep focused as Nicole discusses the different types of ADHD. Just how many types are there? Listen as she explains each one and gives examples. She discusses her own experiences with ADHD as a daughter, a parent, a wife, published author and a coach. I forgot to mention she does all of these things just like anyone else but she too has been diagnosed with...

American Gold Star Mother and U.S. Marine Veteran, Lee-Ann Forsythe, assumes co-hosting duties today on “Movement Monday” to talk about the great work that American Gold Star Mothers Inc. (AGSM) does for our nations Gold Star Mothers, Active Duty Members, Veterans and Youth through varies outreach programs and partnerships. Lee-Ann talks about the wonderful contributions these amazing Mothers make to each other and the country. Like her father, Lee-Ann served in the Marines, as did her...