Veterans who served sidebyside reunite through nonprofit retreat
Dec 17, 2024
Warrior Ridge is a nonprofit that offers on-site events to reunite veterans who have served side-by-side. The experiences are designed to recreate the support system these teams once had together.Landon Bentley is the executive director and founder of Warrior Ridge. He served in Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2005 to 2007 and is now dedicated to helping other veterans."Back in 2019, I went down pretty hard and there wasn't a lot of support there for me." explains Bentley. "It's rough to deal with things. I guess when you see some extreme things, it just never leaves your mind. Then, you get out and you come home and there is not many people that have experienced what you have experienced. So, a couple of my teammates came down and they got me out of the gutter and man, it just means the world because they knew exactly what I went through because they went through it as well."Those who have served in the military can experience anxiety, depression, and PTSD following deployment, and unfortunately, the suicide rate among veterans is high."Everyone knows somebody that has committed suicide and that's unfortunate. Something needs to happen and people need to get serious about it." says Bentley.Bentley hopes the nonprofit continues to grow by spreading the word and helping veterans in need of a support system."If you see a veteran please reach out. Just say hey, how you doing? Or hey, I just appreciate your service. Do you have anywhere to go for the holidays? Or is anyone bringing you a meal? I mean just do it and I promise you, it will make you feel better than buying somebody something," says Bentley.If you would like to nominate someone to attend a retreat, click here to visit the website.You can also learn more about the Warrior Ambassador Program and how you can get involved.