Why Start a New Nonprofit Organization? Many people have been asking us this question. “The work you\u2019ve been doing at the Adaptive Sports Foundation (ASF) and the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) has been so successful. Why start something new?\u201d<\/p>\n
Believe me- we didn\u2019t come to this decision easily. The truth is- it took months of reflection and inner turmoil. But when it comes down to it, it\u2019s not about us. It\u2019s about the students and the program participants; it\u2019s about the healing that takes place. It\u2019s about people helping people to find health and happiness, yes; but it\u2019s more about people helping people live<\/em>. And it\u2019s not just about what<\/em> we do, it\u2019s about why <\/em>and the way<\/em> we do it.<\/p>\n We went down to ASF almost 3 years ago to observe a WWP event that was scheduled. It was the first event of its kind there. We were invited by the ASF Program Director, Pam Greene, because she knew of our team-building experience from our days working together at Mount Snow. The event was for warriors battling through post-traumatic stress (PTSD) from their combat experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pam knew nothing of our recent experiences with non-combat PTSD; Pam and I hadn\u2019t worked together in a half dozen years years. A door opened. We walked through it. I met a guy named Joel. Our lives changed. We\u2019ve been there since, commuting from our home in Vermont. Now it\u2019s time to open new doors in new places.<\/p>\n The work we\u2019ve done at ASF with WWP has been very successful. Many wounded veterans have walked through our doors feeling isolated and without direction, and left at least knowing that there are civilians out there that understand, care, and appreciate them exactly as they are without judgment. Most walked away feeling connected to new friends and motivated to practice new ways of living and getting through each day. New sports and recreational activities took place, yes, but more importantly, healing took place. This didn\u2019t happen by chance; it happened through the dedicated efforts of our ASF volunteers and program staff. It happened through the leadership and passion provided by Jo and me, and the support provided by ASF and WWP to help us start new programs to impact more people in new ways.<\/p>\n There comes a time when organizations need to choose which direction to proceed, especially given limited resources and multiple talents. Jo and I know that there are many, many more folks out there who could benefit from our integrated and holistic approach to heal trauma and overcome the challenges of visible or invisible disabilities. We want to find them and help them.There are over 1.7 million veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars (Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom) alone.\u00a0 According to the National Center on PTSD, nearly 40% of all troops who served in the wars are diagnosed with some form of PTSD.\u00a0 However, this number is thought to be drastically higher as many war veterans are never officially diagnosed and treated for PTSD. \u00a0In addition, about 50,000 have suffered from physical disability as a result of these wars.<\/p>\n We believe that the benefits of our work can be more far-reaching than those benefits provided by just teaching adaptive sports in one location. We want to explore these benefits with others\u2026 full-time, full-effort, with passion, with grace, with feelings of compassion, dignity, and love, and in other locations. We believe that the mind, body and spirit are indeed related and inextricably connected; that you can\u2019t heal one aspect without involving the others. This vision sounds simple. In practice, it\u2019s the fundamental challenge that we as humans have been trying to solve for generations as we seek sustaining health and happiness. For Jo and me and our Wild Mountain U team, we believe it\u2019s time.<\/p>\n Personally, I believe that the survivors of traumatic experiences, life-altering disability, and chronic illnesses have often dealt with very basic issues of survival and \u201chigher\u201d reasons for living. I believe that when appreciated, this perspective gives them insights into living, health and happiness that are important and deserve to be shared. I believe through attitudes of mindful learning, holistic healing, and community support, these individuals can heal and live healthy lives. I also believe that those who have healed in this manner, and especially those who have served through combat military service, have the opportunity to be the healers (and leaders of healing) of tomorrow.<\/p>\n As we develop our programs and define our organization, we will start by telling stories of those with whom we have worked; they can tell their stories, their challenges, and their successes much better than I can describe here. We have our perspective, our experiences. But each person is different, each experience is different, each story is different, and each story is important. We want to share stories of healing, create experiences for learning, and foster a growing community of supportive individuals of all abilities and disabilities, working together to overcome the debilitating and isolating effects of trauma, physical disability, and chronic illness. People helping people- it brings out the best in people, yes?<\/p>\n Our programs will be intentionally-designed group experiences that foster an environment of trust, relationship-building, skills-learning, and wellness-practicing in an experiential learning format. We know that yoga works; not just the physical practice, but also the present-moment mindfulness, the disciplined breathing and focus, and the deep-rest benefits. Thus, we start with an understanding of the art and science of yoga. We know that rebuilding a sense of personal connection with a group of supportive individuals in a natural setting helps foster a spirit of community, greater-purpose connection, and individual importance. We know that the integration of strength-based and mindful adventure-learning creates feelings of self-efficacy and self-worthiness. We know that healing is not a quick fix, not an isolated discussion or a magic remedy; healing takes time through awareness and learning, intention and practice, intuition and supportive community\u2026 unity of mind, body and spirit… and mentors. So, in our programs and through our on-going support of program participants, we will practice and share these teachings with attitudes of non-judgment and dignity, empowerment, and step-by-step adaptive learning.<\/p>\n Soon, we will present more and more programs. We will describe more and more about what we do and who we impact. We will partner with like-minded individuals and organizations. Our Wild Mountain U team will be diverse and inclusive. We believe this work is important; so do others. It is an important time of change. Through our stories, our work will become clearer and clearer to those who want to support us (but may not be sure now). We have faith that the stories of successful survival, healing, and community support will alone create momentum and grassroots support. \u201cAble-bodied\u201d people helping \u201cdisable-bodied\u201d people; \u201cdisable-bodied\u201d people helping \u201cable-bodied\u201d people. “Invisible” disabilities; “visable” abilities. People helping people; no boundaries, no judgment\u2026 a vision we all can support.<\/p>\n We expect to start this new nonprofit based on our previous experiences, but we also are open to change as we continue to live and adapt step-by-step in each daily moment. All the while, we will focus on the vision. We will focus on the people we are serving, dignifying and empowering the individuals who may be struggling now, but who we know will also be the teachers and healers of the future. We will do our best to walk the walk, at their side, as we develop this new organization together.<\/p>\n At first, we realize that the impact of our work may be limited to the first 10, or 20, or 50 people we directly impact through our hands-on work. Eventually, these stories will be shared, these experiences will be taught to others, and new communities of healing will be built. Barriers between abilities and disabilities, visible and invisible, will be broken. 50 will become 500. And 500 will become 5,000. And who knows, maybe 5,000 will become 5 million or 50 million. Each person is important and has unique gifts to share. Yet all people and all things are connected. So, we\u2019ll start one person at a time, one step at a time. The first step is the hardest. By starting this new organization, we just took the first step. Wish us luck! There are many individuals who deserve our support, and we will all be better people by supporting them.<\/p>\nShare this:<\/h3>