&#8220;Extreme gratitude” has sustained retired Marine and Purple Heart recipient Gabe Martinez after he lost both of his legs to a roadside bomb in Afghanistan 15 years ago.
Martinez spoke to Morning Wire about his injury, recovery, life after the military, and the Semper Fi &amp; America’s Fund that helps wounded veterans with severe injuries and disabilities.
Martinez was in seventh grade on September 11, 2001, when al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked commercial planes and flew them into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon, while a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. The tragedy spurred Martinez to enlist in the Marines in 2006, immediately after graduating high school.
In 2008, Martinez found himself on his first deployment with a Marine Expeditionary Unit assigned to Navy ships across the Middle East. Two years later, in 2010, he was on his second deployment, this time in Afghanistan.
“Thanksgiving 2010 is obviously a day I&#8217;ll never forget. I remember everything about it,” said Martinez. “I was in for about three years at that point. We were going to the Helmand province of Afghanistan. … We knew it was going to be a tougher deployment. That was a real brutal year for some of the Marine Corps units out there.”
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About an hour into the convoy near a Taliban stronghold, an IED exploded underneath one of the vehicles in Martinez’s line. Martinez’s immediate job was to hunt for secondary explosives hidden in the surrounding dirt. The wreckage of the destroyed vehicle made his metal detector worthless. He was forced to dig in the dirt with his hands, carefully sweeping for more potentially buried explosives. 
Martinez had just finished investigating one spot and was moving to another area where the dirt appeared to have been recently disturbed when another IED — a 25-pound bomb in a glass jar — exploded beneath him.
“I remember getting tossed up into the air, and then I landed in this crater that the IED had created,” he recalled. “I remember everything was red — like all my vision was red — and I remember thinking, like, something really got rattled loose up, you know, up in my head. And what I realized is that it was blood going down from my skull into my eyes. The piece of shrapnel had gone through my helmet and into my forehead.”
“I remember wiping that free and looking down and seeing that my legs were, they were still there. One was hanging off to the side, one was on my chest,” Martinez said.
A whirlwind 48 hours followed. Martinez and two more Marines, one concussed from the first IED and the other with his legs also blown off from a bomb just after Martinez, were loaded together on a helicopter and rushed to the nearest medical facility capable of performing surgery. Within an hour of his injury, Martinez, still conscious, was able to call his wife using a satellite phone on the base.
Doctors at the facility finished amputating what was left of Martinez’s legs. From there, he was flown back to the United States and arrived in Bethesda, Maryland, less than two days after stepping on an IED in Afghanistan.
After finding out that he would survive, Martinez’s thoughts shifted to how he would live with his injury. But despite the difficulties, he was mostly grateful to be alive.
“I didn&#8217;t really know what life looked like for me, especially now having no legs — lost both my legs at 22 years old, I was recently married — and so life was very uncertain at that point. In my mind, I figured that was pretty much it. I didn&#8217;t have legs, so I was figuratively and literally half the man I once was,” said Martinez.
“The day I woke up in the hospital in the United States was when I met the Semper Fi &amp; America&#8217;s Fund, and they were able to answer a lot of that for me, you know, because fortunately-slash-unfortunately, they had a lot of experience with my situation,” he continued. “My mentality then is similar to how it is now — and it&#8217;s gratitude despite ups and downs. It&#8217;s extreme gratitude.”
The Semper Fi &amp; America’s Fund <a href="https://thefund.org/hero-stories/marine-sergeant-gabe-martinez-why-i-became-a-marine/">provided</a> Martinez opportunities to push himself and conquer new challenges despite his disability.
“My wife still to this day says I was like a ‘yes man.’ Like, I said yes to anything and everything, whether it was rock climbing, skiing–things I&#8217;ve never even done before, I found myself doing it. And it was great for my recovery because it showed me what I could do. And really, there weren&#8217;t any limits to what I could or couldn&#8217;t do,” he said.
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The toughest challenge for Martinez was leaving the military and losing the community that had sustained him throughout the early days of his injury. Martinez again found himself relying on the Semper Fi &amp; America’s Fund. The fund assigned Martinez a case manager who checked in on his progress and connected him with other veterans in similar situations.
In the military, the anniversary of wounds like Martinez’s is called “Alive Days,” and so Martinez’s Alive Day comes around Thanksgiving every year. (He suffered his injury the day after Thanksgiving in Afghanistan, which happened to be the day of Thanksgiving in the United States). 
Having his Alive Day fall on Thanksgiving has reinforced the gratitude he felt early on at just surviving and being able to return home.
“For me and my Alive Day being either on or around Thanksgiving was one of those blessings in disguise because it brings me back to that day 15 years ago … and like I said, gives me that reset perspective,” he said. “I&#8217;m able to, you know, look around and see my family, my kids, you know, my wife and family — kind of how my future has evolved from 15 years ago.&#8221;
“It gives me that perspective of even though every day is not perfect, even though many days I wish, you know, I had my legs or this didn&#8217;t happen to me, it gives me so much to be thankful for. And then being on Thanksgiving just kind of amplifies that while I&#8217;m surrounded by family and friends and all the chaos that ensues with that,” he continued. “I mean, it&#8217;s a huge blessing, and it&#8217;s a great reset for me to kind of have that perspective.”

Purple heart

Gabe Martinez Lost His Legs In Afghanistan 15 Years Ago. Here’s What Thanksgiving Means To Him.

Afghanistan

Marines

Thanksgiving

Veterans

A church on Nashville&#8217;s west side has sat for years with no purpose. CreatiVets, an organization for wounded veterans, saw the church&#8217;s potential, but it came with a hefty Nashville real estate price tag of $3.35 million.
Thankfully, Gary Sinise saw the potential too. The actor best known for his role as Lt. Dan in Forrest Gump, donated $1 million to CreatiVets this spring to help buy the church for veterans to have a place to go to immerse themselves in songwriting, music, and other artistic avenues.
&#8220;Quite often our veterans don&#8217;t want any help. But through art and theatre as well, acting out what they are going through can be very, very beneficial,&#8221; Sinise told the Associated Press.
The Gary Sinise Foundation has given to CreatiVets the last two years but nothing compared to the million-dollar gift, according to CreatiVets Co-Founder and Executive Director Richard Casper. Casper, who started CreatiVets in 2013, called Sinise&#8217;s donation a catalyst for the non-profit&#8217;s mission.
&#8220;It will accelerate the opening of our Nashville art and music center, expand access to life-saving songwriting and visual arts programs, and help us drive down the waitlist of veterans seeking creative healing,&#8221; he said.
Two other donors who remained anonymous each gave $1 million toward the purchase of the church, which was finalized in July. Other influential people, including Grammy Award-winning artist Amy Grant, also donated toward the effort. Grant and Sinise toured the property in person in the spring and wanted to make CreatiVets&#8217; vision a reality.
Part of the CreatiVets&#8217; new home will be a performance center dedicated to Sinise&#8217;s late son, Mac, who died in 2024 after a battle with cancer. Casper said Mac loved music and was very involved with helping veterans through his father&#8217;s foundation.
The Academy Award-nominated actor started his foundation in 2011 to help military veterans, first responders, and their families. The foundation supports programs designed to entertain, educate, inspire, and build. Programs like CreatiVets.
Casper said the funding so far for the new location has been a blessing. To restore the church that&#8217;s been left untouched since at least 2017, the non-profit needs at least $1.9 million for basic renovations. After that is completed, they&#8217;ll need additional support for office supplies.
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-998757 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/IMG_7874-768x576.jpeg" alt="" width="768" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/IMG_7874-768x576.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/IMG_7874-300x225.jpeg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/IMG_7874-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/IMG_7874-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /></div>
At CreatiVets&#8217; current location in the 12 South area of Nashville, veterans can only use the space to its full potential after working hours because it shares space with another business. Casper has fought for the empty church as a new space for more than a year. His goal of providing a 24-hour oasis for veterans keeps him moving through any setback he faces. A new space is needed to play music and have access to other machinery, sometimes noisy, round-the-clock.
The plan is to have the new CreatiVets music center open by next fall.
If you want to donate to CreatiVets, you can visit their website <a href="https://creativets.org/">here</a>.
The organization is hosting a fundraiser on Wednesday at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. You can buy tickets to &#8220;Stars and Scars to Scripts&#8221; featuring performances by Vince Gill, Charles Esten, Kalsey Kulyk, and Jay Demarcus <a href="https://www.tpac.org/events/detail/creativets-15043">here</a>.

CreatiVets/Gary Sinise

Gary Sinise Donates $1 Million To Turn Abandoned Church Into Creative Space For Wounded Veterans

Gary Sinise

Nashville

News

Veterans Day

MixCollage-10-Nov-2025-03-23-PM-5263

American Elections Are Now Being Decided Based On Tribal Blood Feuds In Africa

Democrats

Elections

Leftists

Matt Walsh

Minneapolis

Minnesota

Opinion

Somalia

World War II

Three people were killed and eight were injured when an alleged U.S. veteran who claimed he was suffering from PTSD fired into a dockside North Carolina restaurant, killing three people and leaving at least one other person fighting for their life.
The suspect was named by the Southport Police Department as Nigel Max Edge, arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, five counts of attempted first-degree murder, and five counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, with additional charges pending.
“We believe that this was a targeted location,” Southport Police Chief Todd Coring stated at a press conference. “He acted in what we call a ‘lone wolf.’ He acted alone. This is highly premeditated from what we are seeing at this time and we feel that there are no other threats to our community, that we do have someone in custody.&#8221;
He added that an active investigation is underway.
Coring continued that the suspect was identified as a combat veteran injured in the line of duty and said he suffered from PTSD.
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“On Saturday, September 27, 2025 at approximately 9:30 PM, members of the Southport Police Department were dispatched to calls of shots fired with multiple injuries at the American Fish Company, located at 150 Yacht Basin Dr, Southport, NC 28461,” the Southport, North Carolina, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/cityofsouthportnc/posts/pfbid0BwvyoikCymScwnc1jgKrx5nqjgqWFd73pBFBvitAH13F9bEijmzKmkDppDmonDfel">Facebook page</a> stated. “Just prior, a boat with a single occupant traveling on the Cape Fear River, paused briefly at the American Fish Company and opened fire, fatally wounding three patrons, and injuring at least eight others. The boat then fled the area, towards the Intracoastal Waterway in the direction of Oak Island. Shortly after 10:00 PM, the U.S. Coast Guard observed a single individual matching the description of the shooter, loading their boat at the public boat ramp at NE 55th Street in Oak Island. The Coast Guard crew detained this suspect.”
The suspect reportedly was formerly known as Sean William DeBevoise, who authored a book titled, “Headshot: Betrayal of a Nation.” In the author’s comments about the book, he stated, “The attacks on 9/11 would decide my future for me. I enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and deployed 3 times; first to Haiti&#8217;s political turmoil, then to Iraq twice. Returning from the warzone severely wounded, my life would never be the same as it once was.”

MixCollage-28-Sep-2025-12-03-PM-8684

Suspect Charged In North Carolina Dockside Shooting That Killed 3, Injured 8

Crime

Mass Shooting

North Carolina

Shooting

U.S.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will sign legislation Wednesday aimed at helping veterans receive federal assistance with their mortgages, The Daily Wire has learned.
Trump will sign the VA Home Loan Program Reform Act on Wednesday, a White House official shared with The Daily Wire. The signing will take place in the Roosevelt Room of the White House at 1:3o pm ET.
Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) originally introduced the bill in March, and the legislation passed the Senate earlier this month.
&#8220;This is going down!&#8221; Van Orden said in a <a href="https://x.com/derrickvanorden/status/1950562940580467071">post</a> celebrating the news on Wednesday. &#8220;We are making sure that the VA Home Loan Guarantee will remain a viable program into the future so our vets can achieve the American Dream of homeownership.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_954321" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-sign-bill-to-help-veterans-buy-and-keep-their-homes/topshot-france-history-wwii-dday-anniversary-2" rel="attachment wp-att-954321"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-954321" class="wp-image-954321 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-1148305892-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-1148305892-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-1148305892-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-1148305892-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-1148305892.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>TOPSHOT &#8211; A WWII veteran points to US President Donald Trump and US First Lady Melania Trump during a French-US ceremony at the Normandy American Cemetery on June 6, 2019. (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
The legislation is intended to help veterans who have fallen behind on their mortgages receive federal aid: it establishes a permanent partial claims program within the VA Home Loan Program, &#8220;bringing VA in line with other federal agencies that lend money for homes and replacing the fiscally irresponsible Biden administration-era VASP program,&#8221; according to a release from Van Orden&#8217;s office.
“Under the Biden administration, the VA created the VASP program without consulting Congress, costing the American taxpayers $5.8 billion and endangering the entire VA home loan guarantee program,” Van Orden said in a statement earlier this month.
“The time for faceless bureaucrats to run roughshod over elected officials is over,&#8221; added Van Orden, who serves as  Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Economic Opportunity Subcommittee. &#8220;My bill offers a real solution to help every servicemember and veteran maintain the American Dream of homeownership. I am grateful to my Senate colleagues for passing this important bill, and I look forward to President Trump signing it into law.”
The president will also deliver remarks on &#8220;Making Health Technology Great Again&#8221; on Wednesday afternoon at the White House following the bill signing.

President Trump Departs The White House For Pittsburgh

Trump To Sign Bill To Help Veterans Buy And Keep Their Homes

Congress

Donald Trump

Executive

Politics

White House

The Supreme Court on Thursday <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24-320_m648.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unanimously ruled</a> that disabled veterans were entitled to retroactive compensation.
The case, Soto v. United States, began as a class action lawsuit led by Simon Soto, who served in the Marines for six years until he was medically retired. Soto served for part of this time in Mortuary Affairs, where he was “assigned to ‘search for, recover, and process the remains’ of war casualties.’” He struggled to return to civil life and was later diagnosed with a 100% disability rating for post-traumatic stress disorder by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), signifying “[t]otal occupational and social impairment.”
Soto applied for combat-related special compensation (CRSC), which is intended to offset the portion of retirement pay veterans are required to waive in order to receive disability benefits from the VA. Originally available only to veterans with 20 or more years of service, Congress extended special compensation to all veterans in 2008.
Soto applied for CRSC in 2016, and was found eligible. The government gave him retroactive compensation for his waived retirement pay, but capped it at six years, citing the Barring Act, which “subjects most claims to a six-year limitations period.” But the Barring Act also said that if “another law” allows the government to adjudicate settlements with the government, the six-year ceiling is not applicable.
Soto filed a class action lawsuit with other veterans whose compensation was limited under the Barring Act. They argued that the combat-related special compensation falls under the Barring Act’s loophole for superseding laws. The government argued that the statute establishing combat-related special compensation lacked the “specific language” needed to establish this.
A district court ruled in favor of Soto, and a federal circuit ruled in favor of the government, sending the case to the Supreme Court.
Justice Clarence Thomas delivered the opinion of the court, which emphasized that Congress isn’t limited by specific language arguments.
“As this Court has repeatedly explained, Congress &#8216;need not state its intent in any particular way,” and &#8216;[w]e have never required that Congress use magic words.&#8217;”
The Court ruled that there is sufficient basis for “another law” in the combat-related special compensation statute, ultimately deciding that Soto and his fellow veterans, whom they described as a “group of exceptionally deserving claimants”, can receive full disability compensation for their service.

Clarence Thomas

Supreme Court Rules Unanimously In Favor Of Back Pay For Disabled Vets

Supreme Court

Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said that after a weekend of violent riots — during which property was vandalized and police officers and federal agents were targeted by protesters in the streets of Los Angeles — a local VA clinic was forced to close its doors.
Collins issued the statement on Monday afternoon, one day after President Donald Trump deployed National Guard troops to the California city in an effort to get the riots under control and protect the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents who were attempting to enforce federal immigration laws.
The VA secretary shared a photo showing the side of the Los Angeles VA building spray-painted with threats and profanities aimed at federal officials, adding, &#8220;To the violent mobs in Los Angeles rioting in support of illegal immigrants and against the rule of law – Your actions are interfering with Veterans’ health care.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
To ensure the safety of Veterans and employees, <a href="https://twitter.com/DeptVetAffairs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DeptVetAffairs</a> had to make the difficult decision to temporarily close its LA Ambulatory Care Center. The clinic will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so, and in the meantime, in-person appointments at the facility are being…
— VA Secretary Doug Collins (@SecVetAffairs) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecVetAffairs/status/1932141182404186216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;To ensure the safety of Veterans and employees, @DeptVetAffairs had to make the difficult decision to temporarily close its LA Ambulatory Care Center. The clinic will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so, and in the meantime, in-person appointments at the facility are being rescheduled or shifted to telehealth,&#8221; he added.
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In an effort to contain the riots, the Trump administration also deployed a number of U.S. Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton, some of whom were expected to relieve the National Guard troops who had already been in the city for nearly two days. Of the 2,000 National Guard troops who were initially deployed to Los Angeles, only approximately 300 have been actively engaged on the streets.

Senate Nomination Hearing Held For Doug Collins To Be Veterans Affairs Secretary

Veterans Affairs Sec Says ‘Violent Mobs In Los Angeles’ Forced Veterans Clinic To Close

Department of Veterans Affairs

Doug Collins

Health Care

Military

Veterans Affairs (VA)

As a medic, my grandfather sat by countless hospital beds during the Korean War.
He would write letters home for men who knew they might never see their families again. Those moments became powerful memories for him. They were a weight he carried for decades. He bore the burden of memory — a burden we are now in danger of forgetting.
Memorial Day isn’t just a holiday. It’s a defiant stand against our own human tendency to let the sacrifices of the fallen fade into the noise of our fast-paced lives. We must remember, because the stories of those who gave everything for our freedom are the part of our story that makes everything possible for us in our current time.
My grandfather carried with him that weight of remembering until his final days. My wife’s grandfather, a bomber pilot in Vietnam, carried a similar burden. Like my grandfather, he rarely spoke of his service. But when those of us in the family who served sit with him, he begins to share.
His stories are vivid, etched with the clarity of a man who could never forget the skies he flew or the comrades who didn’t return. He holds on to the memories, because they matter. Listening to him, I have come to realize how vital it is to hold those stories close. They aren’t just his — they’re ours. They are American stories. Stories of our country&#8217;s finest, who died so that my children and I can be free.
Our culture, driven by a relentless news cycle and a forward-looking obsession, often forgets. It’s our own human nature to let the past slip away, to assume our freedoms and comforts are a given. But this forgetting comes at a cost. As my grandfather’s stories taught me, memory is not passive. It is an active choice, a discipline.
Scripture repeatedly underscores this truth. Deuteronomy 5:15 tells us to “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.&#8221;
God commands His people to remember. Why? Because without memory, we lose our sense of who we are. We begin to think history began with us, ignoring the countless souls who have paved our way. Memorial Day is our national reminder of this truth, a day to recall the men and women who laid down their lives so we might live free.
The weight of memory is not meant to crush us but to ground us. It reminds us that our freedom is not free—it was purchased at a great price. The families of the fallen walk among us, carrying their own quiet burdens. We honor them by listening to their stories, by reading about the sacrifices made, by teaching our children the names and deeds of those who served. My grandfather never forgot. My wife’s grandfather never forgot. Their memories shaped them, and now they shape us.
There is something else about remembering those who died so that we might live. It reminds us that their sacrifice demands our action. They gave their lives so that we can live. We have an obligation to take that seriously and live with meaning. We have a duty to march forward and seek victory. To do what is good. To live our lives, and pass our heritage down to our children. If we do not, we belittle the sacrifices made on our behalf.
It is time for us all to discipline ourselves and remember. We must be thankful for the sacrifice and embrace our great heritage. We must live our lives like they have been protected at great cost — because they have been. We must remember.
* * *
Daniel Hayworth is the Lead Pastor of Vintage Church Harker Heights near Fort Hood, Texas, where he lives with his wife and four children. 
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

BULGARIA-NATO-DEFENCE-MILITARY-EXERCISE

The Weight Of Memory: Why Memorial Day Matters

Memorial Day

Soldiers

With Memorial Day so near, I’m thinking of active-duty military, their families, and our veterans.
It’s impossible to let this national day of commemoration pass without addressing the tragic statistics of military and veteran suicide. Twenty-two veterans commit suicide each day. That’s one veteran every 65 minutes.
A 2024 Pentagon study revealed another devastating statistic: American soldiers are now <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2024/06/11/military-suicide-defense-department-pentagon-study/73983842007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more likely</a> to die from suicide than from any other cause. In an attempt to provide help and resources for our struggling veterans, the <a href="https://988lifeline.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Suicide Crisis Hotline</a>, and organizations such as the Military Suicide Awareness have been created. But is it enough?
Our soldiers may no longer be fighting in traditional ground wars. But those engaged in remote operations can nonetheless suffer invisible wounds just as crippling as an IED blast.
Almost 7% of veterans will <a href="https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suffer from PTSD</a> in their lifetime. These struggles not only affect veterans, but can have a cascading impact on their families, too. It is vital to recognize the great impact active duty and veteran life has on our military families. In 2022, for example, 146 military family members died by suicide, including 83 spouses and 53 dependents, the majority of whom were under 18.
Often, military spouses are expected to be the glue that holds the family together. We are expected to be resilient and strong despite the deployments, raising children alone while repeatedly losing community because of frequent relocations.
But military spouses often suffer in silence. Depression, under the best of circumstances, is isolating. But when you experience frequent moves and loss of community and support, it only adds to that sense of loneliness and having to “deal with it” on your own.
I struggled with the shame and embarrassment for not being able to “tough it out” and handle everything while my spouse was away serving. I struggled with the guilt of not feeling strong enough. It is an isolating battle, and it’s almost easier to sink into yourself rather than risk judgment or become a poor reflection on your spouse when you finally do ask for help.
These struggles are often overlooked by both the military and civilian communities. But they shouldn’t be.
We as a society need to end the stigma surrounding mental health for our soldiers and our military families. Supporting our veterans and military families starts with compassion, education, and collective action.
It’s time to share stories of veterans and spouses who have sought help and found healing to inspire hope and reassurance. We need to launch mentorship programs that pair a healed service member or spouse with one facing struggles to foster encouragement and fellowship. We can establish essential services, including support groups, counseling, and mental health-informed medical care, to support their journey to healing.
This is a time for our leaders — both military and civilian — to step up and speak openly about the mental health situation affecting our veterans and military families. Their actions and policies set the tone for whether mental health is seen as a weakness or a priority. We need to make it a priority.
Together, let’s strive to serve our veterans and their families through initiatives like #988, volunteering, and raising awareness. Together, 22-a-day may become a thing of the past, and our soldiers and their families can find hope for the future.
Dani Pettrey is the bestselling author and military spouse. Her latest novel, “Two Seconds Too Late,” features a veteran battling PTSD and depression.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

1st Infantry Division Soldiers Return Home To Fort Knox From Afghanistan

This Memorial Day, We Should Think About Military Families

PTSD

With so many veterans&#8217; charities and organizations operating, it can be difficult for those who want to help America&#8217;s veterans ensure that their donations are going to the people they&#8217;re intended to help.
One group says it has the solution.
<a href="https://charitiesforvets.org/about-us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Charities for Vets</a> uses a straightforward rating process to help donors easily determine which veteran-focused organizations are managing their funds efficiently and getting the most money to the intended recipients.
Richard Berman, Executive Director of the RAM Foundation, told The Daily Wire he launched Charities for Vets because he saw just how many philanthropic groups were not using their resources effectively — and because, ultimately, the people that would be hurt by waste and abuse in charitable organizations would be those the charities were intended to help.
&#8220;We talk so often about &#8216;waste, fraud, and abuse,'&#8221; Berman said. &#8220;How many people are abusing their donors’ trusts by not delivering on the services they’ve promised?&#8221;
Charities For Vets answers those questions with a simple process. The group evaluates charities using data gleaned from IRS forms and other official filings, with the goal of determining &#8220;who is wasting money?
Berman explained what he believed set Charities for Vets apart from other watchdog organizations.
&#8220;There are a lot of watchdogs already out there, and I wouldn’t have done this if I thought they were doing a good job or if I didn’t think I could do it better,&#8221; he told The Daily Wire. &#8220;People are contributing money to organizations that are poorly run, and average small donors often don’t know those ratings even exist — or won’t pay for subscription to access the information.&#8221;
He also noted that Charities For Vets scores organizations differently from other watchdogs. While some organizations gave ratings for different areas and then averaged them, he said, Charities For Vets scores each area, &#8220;and a fail in any area results in a &#8216;not-recommended&#8217; status.&#8221;
&#8220;We have told people that if we have given you a poor rating, we will consider unique situations and change recommendations — and year to year, they can see changes in status if they are doing better or worse in any area. We have seen new heads of charities come in, call us, and make changes accordingly,&#8221; Berman added. &#8220;We are very sensitive to not making a mistake — a personal responsibility on my part. We are all volunteers. No one has any incentive to do anything different than call balls and strikes.&#8221;
Vietnam veteran and retired Marine Corps Colonel Pete Metzger, a member of the Charities For Vets advisory board, told The Daily Wire that Berman recruited him forthe project. Once he saw the concept, he was sold.
&#8220;It sounded to me like third grade common sense, and that&#8217;s important for an infantry guy. If people are going to give money, and thank God they do, the money ought to be going to where they think it’s going,&#8221; he said, adding, &#8220;The genius is in its simplicity, it’s not complicated at all. If you want to give some money, and we hope you do, just go to the website and look for the recommendation. It&#8217;s like a Consumer Report, but for charities instead of vacuum cleaners.&#8221;
Metzger went on to say that the results already seemed to be speaking for themselves.
&#8220;From 2022 to 2023, the charities that we did not recommend saw a drop in donations of 11.25%, or $125 million. Those that we recommended saw their donations increase by $23 million — and those that we highly recommended had an increase of $65 million.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re not in the business to stop people from donating, we just want to divert funds to the charities that are doing the right things and encourage the charities that aren’t to fix things,&#8221; Metzger added.
Fellow advisory board member and retired Navy Commander Kirk Lippold told The Daily Wire that the project held a special meaning for him: he was Commander of the USS Cole when it was attacked by terrorists in 2000.
Knowing what it was like to watch service members and their families who were dependent on the help they received from charitable organizations, Lippold said that it was doubly important to make sure that those charities were being smart with the money coming in from donors.
For some that earned a &#8220;not recommended&#8221; rating, he said that it wasn&#8217;t necessarily about the organizations being bad.
&#8220;It’s not that these organizations don’t do good things, it’s that they’re spending too much money on overhead and fundraising — too little ultimately gets to the people who are supposed to be getting it.&#8221;
&#8220;Americans are incredibly ingenious and hardworking, and they always want to see their money spent efficiently and effectively. This process is the best way I&#8217;ve seen to ensure that the vast majority of it is going to the people who need that help,&#8221; Lippold said. &#8220;Our organization is the gold standard that we want people to turn to in order to determine which organizations give the most to the veterans who serve our great nation.&#8221;
One thing all three men stressed was that ratings were not permanent. Every year, Charities for Vets evaluates the top 100 military charities — and if those organizations make changes for better or for worse, those changes will be reflected in their ratings for that year.
They&#8217;re also open to challenges from organizations that feel they&#8217;ve been evaluated unfairly.
&#8220;It&#8217;s possible that either we miss something or they might report things in way that we can’t easily see what they’re doing. We are always willing to have a conversation about whether we’ve evaluated them fairly,&#8221; Lippold said, adding that if new information presents a different picture, that rating can change.
&#8220;And we do have organizations that are still very upset about getting a &#8216;not recommended&#8217; rating,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But this is the gold standard, and you can get as upset as you want, but we’re not going to change our criteria.&#8221;
Charities for Vets is run entirely by volunteers. Donations to their organization are used instead to promote their service and connect more people to military charities that are most effective at getting donations to the intended recipients.
&#8220;For every $50,000 we get in donations, we reach a million people,&#8221; Metzger said.

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‘America, We Have A Problem’: Non-Profit Reveals Who’s Really Supporting Veterans

'America, We Have A Problem': Non-Profit Cuts Through Ads To See Who's Really Supporting Veterans

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Today is Armed Forces Day, an occasion to express gratitude and respect for those men and women making the sacrifice to serve our country in uniform. This year, I can think of no better way to honor their commitment to duty than to give those reentering civilian life a shot at gainful employment.
Few people truly understand how hard it is to transition out of the military. In uniform, your mission is clear. Your role is defined. You live with structure, purpose, and a sense of belonging. But when service ends, the system that trained you offers little preparation for what comes next.
Sadly, this transition is often treated like a final administrative task rather than the critical life shift it truly is. You get a checklist, a few briefings, and a polite nod toward civilian life. But those things do not prepare you for the deeper shift — how to rebuild your purpose, your identity, and your worth in a world that operates differently.
When the structure and rhythm of military life disappear, veterans are suddenly confronted with a vacuum. The transition programs that are supposed to help prove unproductive because they are still led by people who don’t understand what it takes to succeed after service.
Our servicemen and women get stuck with outdated processes that are heavy on structure and light on relevance, leaving them unprepared for today’s fast-moving economy. If we continue with this approach,  we will keep losing people after the fight is over.
And it isn’t just veterans who are suffering. The economy is feeling the strain as well.
Industries from tech to logistics to healthcare are scrambling to find people who can build teams, make decisions, and lead under pressure. They spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to find qualified candidates, only to be disappointed because they don’t have the grit and follow-through to overcome the challenges faced by today’s organizations.
Hiring managers complain that new workers are entitled, lazy, and don’t take initiative. They say they’re tired of seeing the same resumes and hiring employees who don’t move the needle. But they overlook the group that can address these problems and more: veterans.
Veterans have developed leadership skills, adaptability, and mission-driven focus through years of training and real-world experience. Simply by enlisting, they demonstrated that they are willing to work for something bigger than themselves and make the sacrifices necessary to achieve it.
I have seen how the military trains men and women to lead, build teams, persevere, and thrive under pressure — traits companies claim to need. Yet too often, there is a disconnect. Too often, veterans are overlooked because they do not have the “experience” or necessary qualifications.
These things are undoubtedly important, but should not be the only consideration. When they are, two catastrophic things happen: companies miss out on thousands of uniquely qualified candidates, and veterans are left to suffer.
What could be a wonderful partnership becomes another statistic of veteran unemployment and corporate leadership struggles.
It&#8217;s not that veterans are not capable or that companies don&#8217;t care. The system was simply not built to align the two sides properly.
But that just isn’t good enough for our economy — or our veterans.
We need a new way forward, one that recognizes the immense, ever-changing challenges today’s organizations face while simultaneously valuing the skills veterans have developed through their service — even if they don’t show up on the job experience section in a resume.
It’s time for companies to consider veterans&#8217; unique skills and experiences. They might be exactly what the economy needs because, right now, America isn’t short on workers — it’s short on leaders.
Translating that experience into civilian terms is not simple. But it is possible.
For me, education was part of that process. I chose to study at Pepperdine University, where I was challenged to think differently, expand my leadership skills beyond the military, and see the civilian world not as foreign ground but as a new mission to master.
These years reminded me that growth does not stop when the uniform comes off. It simply changes form, morphing into another kind of challenge. And it&#8217;s one I believe veterans are perfectly suited to meet.
The solution, however,  isn’t more hiring initiatives, which soon become quotas and occasions for empty virtue signaling. Instead, we need deliberate pathways that match veterans’ capabilities and values with organizations willing to put leadership potential to work.
It is not about charity. It’s about putting proven leadership where it belongs — in the fight, making an impact. This can and does lead to real careers, authentic leadership, and incredible results.
If you are serious about building a team that can survive and thrive in the real world, stop overlooking veterans. We don&#8217;t need favors. We need opportunities. And the world needs what we have to offer. So this Armed Forces Day, America’s companies can show their gratitude by trusting those who have already proven they can lead.
Kenny Spratt is the founder and CEO of TalentBase, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business specializing in connecting highly-skilled veterans to meaningful career opportunities across the private sector.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Army’s New Pre-Basic Training Prep Course Helps Potential Soldiers Qualify For Enlistment

American Companies Should Stop Overlooking Veterans

Employers

U.S. Army

After Los Angeles Lakers star Lebron James — who has a long-standing history of flopping on the floor to draw unwarranted fouls from the opposition — flopped one time too many in Wednesday’s playoff game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, as a Minnesota combat veteran and former state representative who had both of his legs blown off in Iraq offered a deathless response on X.
“I had less of a reaction when my legs were blown off,” John Kriesel, who now serves as director of veteran services for Anoka County, reacted. Kriesel was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star medal after serving in Iraq; in 2006, he was injured by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that blew up. He is also the author of the autobiography Still Standing.
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I had less of a reaction when my legs were blown off. <a href="https://t.co/2gWk1EtRzH">https://t.co/2gWk1EtRzH</a>
— John Kriesel (@johnkriesel) <a href="https://twitter.com/johnkriesel/status/1917976625112584332?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The Timberwolves won the game 103-96, eliminating the Lakers from the playoffs.
There were multiple hilarious responses to Kriesel’s post, including:
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A player for the Dallas Stars hockey team died on the bench (flatlined for 2 minutes), was resuscitated in the hallway, and asked to go back into the game.<a href="https://t.co/XfSdKgHlo3">https://t.co/XfSdKgHlo3</a>
— Slim Tidings (@drfeedbacker) <a href="https://twitter.com/drfeedbacker/status/1918096265818083701?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Falls can be deadly for elderly men like LeBron. He could break a hip, be hospitalized and contract staphylococcal infection.
— Greg Brown (@the_Greglodon) <a href="https://twitter.com/the_Greglodon/status/1918109860270653733?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
He is a DIVA &#8211;his name should never be in the same sentence as MJ, Bird or Barkley &#8211;seriously <a href="https://t.co/xBKPVbkSEo">pic.twitter.com/xBKPVbkSEo</a>
— AJH (@UnamedLocation) <a href="https://twitter.com/UnamedLocation/status/1918082924622082507?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
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“Poor LeBron, all 6’9, 250 pounds of him, ran into Minnesota’s Donte Divincenzo, 6’4, 203 pounds, during Wednesday’s Lakers playoff exit and…couldn’t get up.&#8221;
&#8220;Divincenzo, 47 pounds lighter, had no such problem,” Outkick <a href="https://www.outkick.com/sports/lebron-james-has-hall-fame-worthy-flop-sad-lakers-playoff-exit">mocked</a>. “LeBron was on the ground for more than 20 seconds. Men have been hit by prime Mike Tyson and stayed on the canvas for less time than LeBron sprawled himself out on the hardwood.”
Earlier in the series, James got caught after a flop, taking a surreptitious look, apparently to see if the refs had called a foul.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
LeBron think he slick 🤣 
(h/t bonbaguy23/TT) <a href="https://t.co/10OAMCcEJS">pic.twitter.com/10OAMCcEJS</a>
— Overtime (@overtime) <a href="https://twitter.com/overtime/status/1915127592258310587?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
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“James was hit in the face by Timberwolves forward Julius Randle, 30, in the fourth quarter of Game 2 in Los Angeles&#8217; first-round playoff series, and stayed on the floor for several minutes as referees discussed the call,” People Magazine <a href="https://people.com/lebron-james-caught-flopping-fans-think-lakers-playoff-win-11721511">reported</a>.
In a loss to the Boston Celtics during the regular season, James flopped again. Sports Illustrated wrote that he “may have added a lamentable lowlight to his highlight reel with a brutal flop late in the game.”
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Don’t ever compare this man to Jordan again <a href="https://t.co/Il9ccLztkt">pic.twitter.com/Il9ccLztkt</a>
— Samantha (@SN1onX) <a href="https://twitter.com/SN1onX/status/1898585868106870808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 9, 2025</a></blockquote>
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There have even been videos featuring James’ legendary flopping habits:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Lebron FLOPS from Level 1 to 100" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N7cZn9bgATE?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@instabucketz/video/7337784992405277994" data-video-id="7337784992405277994" data-embed-from="oembed" style="max-width:605px; min-width:325px;">
<section> <a target="_blank" title="@instabucketz" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@instabucketz?refer=embed">@instabucketz</a> 
1 minute of LeBron James flopping 😂 Le🩴 <a title="instabucketz" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/instabucketz?refer=embed">#instabucketz</a> <a title="basketball" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/basketball?refer=embed">#basketball</a> <a title="basketball" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/basketball?refer=embed">#basketball</a> 
 <a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Instabucketz" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7337785051411647274?refer=embed">♬ original sound &#8211; Instabucketz</a> </section>
</blockquote>
 <script async src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script>

Minnesota Timberwolves v Los Angeles Lakers – Game Five

LeBron Flops One Time Too Many, Provoking Deathless Response From Iraq Combat Vet

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