ISN'T
ISN'T IT?
ISN'T IT? YOU KNOW, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THIS REALLY COOL CRAFTY WAY THAT YOU CAN HONOR
OUR VETERANS HERE IN THIS
MILITARY CITY OF OURS. RETIRED
NAVY PILOT AND CEO OF HELP HEAL
VETERANS JOHN MCCLAIN IS
JOINING US TO SHARE ABOUT
THE CRAFT AND SALUTE AS WELL AS
US MARINE CORPS VETERAN AND
AMERICA'S GOT TALENT
SEMIFINALIST MARK KELLY. MA'AM
MA'AM AHU, GOOD MORNING TO YOU
BOTH AND THANKS SO MUCH FOR
YOUR SERVICE AND GOOD MORNING,
ERIC. THANKS FOR HAVING US. JOE
,LET'S START WITH YOU. TELL US
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE HEAL
VETS PROGRAM, HOW IT CAME ABOUT
AND TELL US ABOUT THESE REALLY
COOL KIDS. YEAH, YOU BET. SO
HEAL BETH IS A LOCAL SAN DIEGO
NONPROFIT BATTLE LOCALLY BUT
REALLY REACHED NATIONALLY AND
THE TROOPS OVERSEAS SO BADLY
ABOUT 50 YEARS AGO DURING
THE VIETNAM WAR WHERE A LOCAL
BUSINESSMAN FOUND THAT CRAFTING
REALLY HELPED THE HEALING
PROCESS OF MARINE SUFFERING
FROM THE WOUNDS OF WAR. SO
THE LAST 50 YEARS WE DESIGN AND
MANUFACTURE PROVIDE FREE OF
CHARGE THERAPY TO ARGUE CRAFTS
ANTI MILITARY BET OR ACT DUTY
ON GROWING HEALTH CARE
SUFFERING FROM PTSD, TRAUMATIC
BRAIN INJURY, HELPING FAMILY TO
BOND REALLY FOUND THAT
CREATIVITY AT ART IS TRULY
HEALING. SO THESE KITS THAT
PEOPLE CAN PUT TOGETHER WHO
DOES THAT BENEFIT AND HOW DO
PEOPLE GET INVOLVED WITH THAT?
YES, SURE. SO OUR GUESTS ARE
DESIGNED FROM THE GROUND UP TO
BE THERAPEUTIC. WE PROVIDE
THOSE WITH COLLISION INPUT TO
VETS WHO ARE UNDERWEIGHT HEALTH
CARE. SO A VETERAN ACTIVE
MILITARY GET THOSE KITS. BUT
RIGHT NOW REALLY ISN'T AND SO
SO AND SALUTE IS A NATIONAL
ARTS AND CRAFTS PROGRAM THAT WE
ARE PUTTING TOGETHER TO ALLOW
FOLKS TO EXPRESS THEIR
APPRECIATION OF VETS FOR THEIR
MILITARY SERVICE. SO ANDY
CITIZEN AND VOLUNTEER STATIONED
OVERSEAS CAN DESIGN ANY TYPE OF
OR ART WITH EVERY MEETING WITH
THEIR CHOICE THAT TELLS HOW
MILITARY SERVICE OR PATRIOTISM
MEANS TO THEM. AND WE'VE BEEN
DOING THIS FOR THE LAST COUPLE
OF WEEKS. THE OPENINGS THAT
THEY'RE SO OPEN FOR THE NEXT
TWO WEEKS TILL RIGHT BEFORE
VETERANS DAY. AND WE'RE DOING
THIS AND PROVIDE A WAY FOR
PEOPLE TO HONOR BEST DURING
WHERE THEY CAN'T GET THESE
PARADES. BUT ALSO WE KNOW
PEOPLE ARE ISOLATED. AND RIGHT
NOW WE'RE GOING TO PROVIDE THEM
A WAY THAT THEY CAN HEAL TOO
WHILE HONORING VETERANS.
SPEAKING OF OUR VETERANS, LET'S
BRING IN MARK HERE. SIR, THANK
YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE
TELL. WELL, LET'S SHARE WITH
OUR VIEWERS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT
YOUR BACKGROUND AND HOW THESE
CRAFT KITS HAVE HELPED YOU OUT.
BUT FIRST YOUR BACKGROUND. IT'S
VERY INTERESTING. THANK YOU.
THANKS SO MUCH, ERICA. IT'S AN
HONOR TO BE HERE. I WAS
HOMELESS FOR SEVEN YEARS AND
HAS ONLY JUST MET, SOUGHT OUT,
START OUT ASSISTANCE THROUGH
DIFFERENT PROGRAMS HERE IN 78
SAN DIEGO WOUND UP. NOW TODAY I
LIVE IN ALL VETERAN COMMUNITY.
I'M A COMMUNITY REPRESENTATIVE
THERE THAT WAS ERECTED A COUPLE
OF YEARS AGO WITH 50 TO
VETERANS ONBOARD HELP HEALING
THAT'S BROUGHT IN THEIR KIDS TO
ALLOW US NOW THAT WE ARE
SHELTERED TO BE ABLE TO DEAL
WITH SOME OF ONGOING THINGS
THAT CONTINUE. IT'S CREATED
SUCH A GREAT MOVEMENT IN IN
HELPING HELPING VETERANS IN SO
MANY WAYS. MY PERSONAL JOURNEY
HAS BEEN THROUGH A GROUP CALLED
THE VOICES OF OUR CITY CHOIR
WHO WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO
AUDITION FOR AMERICA'S GOT
TALENT AND BECAUSE OF OUR OUR
INVOLVEMENT WITH HOMELESSNESS
AND PEOPLE EXPERIENCING
HOMELESSNESS HAS ELEVATED
MYSELF ALONG WITH ABOUT 56
OTHERS AND TO HAVE HOMES OF
THEIR OWN WHILE INCREDIBLE.
THAT'S JUST REALLY INCREDIBLE.
I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT
ABOUT JOE THE ISSUES WITH
CORONA VIRUS AND HOW YOU GUYS
WERE ABLE TO GET AROUND THAT
DOING THE CRAFT. HAS THAT
CHANGED A LITTLE BIT OF
THE PROCESS? YEAH, IT HAS BEEN
MOSTLY INCREASED DEMAND. RIGHT
NOW WE HAVE VETS WHO CAN'T GET
TO THERAPY. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE
FOLKS ARE ISOLATED. A LOT OF
OUR VETS ARE DEALING WITH
THE UNDERLYING MEDICAL
CONDITIONS SO THEY CAN'T THEY
REALLY BE MORE ISOLATED. OUR
FOLKS, YOUR START TO OUT SO
THE KITCHEN WHO THE GROUND UP
YOU KNOW TO HELP WITH THAT
EITHER NEARBY FOR PTSD THAT A
WAY OF EXPRESSING YOURSELF FOR
TRAUMATIC BRAIN DRAIN AND USING
YOUR HANDS REWIRING THEIR BRAIN
OR THAT YOUNG BRAIN IS BACK
OVERSEAS. THERE CAN'T DO
SOMETHING TOGETHER SO IT'S
REALLY TAILOR MADE AND FOR A
LITTLE THERAPY THAT'S DESIGNED
BY CLINICIANS TO HELP DEREK
KOGUT AND REALLY OUR DEMANDS
TRIPLING AND REALLY WE HAVE NOT
SLOWED DOWN. WE'RE TRYING TO
KEEP UP AND WE'RE CHIPPING ALL
THE WAY FROM A SHIP'S DEPLOYED
OVERSEAS. AIR FORCE FOLKS IN
EUROPE TO ALL OF THESE STATES
GAY AND VERY VARIOUS MILITARY
BASES. AND MARK, YOU'RE HANGING
IN THERE I PRESUME? YES,
ABSOLUTELY. THESE KIDS ARE SO
THERAPEUTIC. AND IT'S HELPED MY
COMMUNITY AND THE VETERANS
INVOLVED DOING THE KIDS. THEY
LITERALLY ARE ACTUALLY BITING
AT THE BIT YOU KNOW, EACH WEEK
THAT WE MEET WITH WITH A
REPRESENTATIVE FROM HOW PEOPLE
GET TO TO REALLY, REALLY EASE
THE TENSION AND THE STRESS THAT
ARE BEING HOUSED. AND THEN OF
COURSE DURING COMBAT BEING PART
OF A LOCKDOWN. MARK, JOE,
THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
REALLY APPRECIATE IT. JOE,
WHERE CAN WE GO TO LEARN A
LITTLE BIT MORE IF PEOPLE
WATCHING THIS DO WANT TO GET
OUT THERE AND HELP? WELL,
BASICALLY GOOD THURSDAY. FIRST
BRISBANE AND SALUTE. THAT'S
IT. SO HOW DID THE THREE WEEK
SUMMIT GO TO A WEB SITE HEAL
BETHESDA OR G AND EXPRESS YOUR
APPRECIATION TO THE FOLKS WHO
HAVE SERVED SO WELL BY GIVING A
LITTLE BIT OF ART? THANKS FOR
YOUR SERVICE AND YOUR
DEDICATION TO BOTH GENTLEMEN