July 22, 2024 • 28 mins
I Spent 24 Hours In A Military Survival School | Episode 136
Chapter Markers
0:00 Mental Health and Career Transitions
19:47 Community Impact and Personal Growth
What happens when a US Navy veteran faces the tumultuous journey from military service to civilian life? Join us as we sit down with Jeremiah Tomko, who courageously opens up about his struggle with mental health and substance abuse during this critical transition. Jeremiah shares the raw and real challenges he faced, from finding housing and employment to battling the invisible wounds of service. His heartfelt story paints a vivid picture of the broader issues veterans encounter and offers valuable insights for anyone navigating similar paths.
Jeremiah’s journey is not just about overcoming obstacles; it’s a testament to the power of positive influences, mentors, and the strength to ask for help. We delve into the emotional ties to military service and the importance of pursuing passion amidst adversity. Networking and setting ambitious goals emerge as key elements for personal and organizational growth. Jeremiah’s candid discussion sheds light on the significance of active recovery, balance, and having a supportive team. This episode is a powerful reminder that with the right support systems, anyone can navigate life’s toughest challenges.
Voices for Voices® is the #1 ranked podcast where people turn to for expert mental health, recovery and career advancement intelligence.
Our Voices for Voices® TV show and podcast is all about teaching you insanely actionable techniques to help you prosper, grow your self worth and personal brand.
So, if you are a high achiever or someone who wants more out of life, whether mentally, physically or spiritually, make sure you subscribe to our podcast right now!
As you can see, the Voices for Voices® show publishes episodes that focus on case studies, real life examples, actionable tips and "in the trenches" reports and interviews from subscribers like you.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Voices for Voices TV show and podcast.
I am your host, justin AllenHayes, founder and executive
director of Voices for Voices.
Voices for Voices is the numberone ranked podcast and TV show
where people turn to for expertmental health recovery and
(00:22):
career advancement intelligence.
Mental health recovery andcareer advancement intelligence.
Our show is all about teachingyou insanely actionable
techniques that help you prosper, grow your self-worth and
personal brand.
So if you are a high achieveror someone who wants more out of
life, whether mentally,physically or spiritually, make
(00:47):
sure to subscribe to our TV showand podcast right now.
As you can see, our showpublishes episodes every week
that focus on case studies, reallife examples, actionable tips
and in-the-trenches reports andinterviews from subscribers just
(01:08):
like you.
If that sounds like somethingthat could help you grow
personally or professionally,then make sure to join me by
subscribing and also share witha friend or two and your family.
We'd love to have you aboard.
This episode is part two fromthe episode we had last week
(01:32):
with in-studio guest Voices forVoices board member Jeremiah
Tomko, also a US militaryveteran from the US Navy, and we
invite you to check thatepisode out, if you haven't
already, because it is veryinspiring to hear an active and
(01:59):
now US military veteran talkingabout their time in the service,
a US military veteran talkingabout their time in the service,
and it really made me feelproud to be a US citizen here to
have individuals like Jeremiahthat really put their lives on
(02:21):
the line for not just me or you,but for everybody in the
country.
So Jeremiah is with us again instudio, but this episode, what
we're going to do is we're goingto shift from a transition
period, from when Jeremiah leftthe military honorably and
(02:43):
entered civilian life, intowhere he's at today and how.
Mental health, substance abuse,many topics that us at Voices
for Voices are trying to bringlight to trying to knock out the
stigma around help others,around help others.
(03:11):
And I guess first we'll jumpinto a certificate that Jeremiah
received when he was in themilitary, and it is a prevent
certificate and it reads quotethis is to certify that CS3
(03:45):
Tomkoko, jeremiah J, hascompleted the course of
instruction or earning thecertificate to transitioning
into civilian life and how thatled him to where he is now of
(04:06):
leading a life of serving othersin the community with our
organization as a Voices forVoices board member and just as
a human being.
So, jeremiah, thank you forjoining us again.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Thanks, justin, I appreciate you having me back
here.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Yeah, so again, thank you for your service.
Yes, sir, we really appreciatethat and all that you've done
and you continue to do, and theshed light.
I understand that you work alittle bit with the VA, even to
this day, and that's importantfor a number of reasons.
(04:45):
So, as we talk about substanceabuse, reentry, individuals that
have been incarcerated or areincarcerated and are set to be
released at a certain point,there are a lot of things that
(05:06):
an individual at that life stageneeds, just as a human being,
which sometimes, you know us, wetake for granted.
You know, sometimes, in mostcases, I dare to say, an
individual is released from theDepartment of Corrections and
(05:29):
it's like, okay, you're released, and there's not, usually maybe
a plan to go with on the okay,where are they going to live,
how are they going to feedthemselves, how are they going
to work, how are they going toeven look for a job, how are
they going to find a mentor andall those things?
(05:50):
Can you touch on just thattransition as you were exiting
the military, how mental healthkind of maybe impacted that area
of your life and others, andhow that led you to start the
(06:11):
journey to get to where we're attoday?
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Excellent questions.
Regarding this certificate,it's a program that is required,
to my knowledge.
When I was in, you had to gothrough this I don't remember
the exact name of the program,but this was a certificate that
you needed to leave and I thinkI had dinner early because I
(06:40):
didn't get out until 2006.
Okay, because I didn't get outuntil 2006.
Okay, and I think I got out.
Let's see, august was about myout date specifically, so I
think I might have got outaround June because I had some
time saved, so you could eitherhave, you know, got out early or
(07:03):
whatever the plan you wantedwas.
So I did get out and 2006.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And completed my four years audible discharge as well
.
So how did mental health,substance abuse, reentry, how
did those topics and terms kindof take hold in your life?
You know, to complete thisprogram in the military but then
(07:35):
, when you're finished with youractive service, to transition
back into civilian life.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
I mean, yeah, I was 20 to 24 when I was in the
military and you know we werebusy a lot.
I mean, when I was on that ship,uss Patina, we were constantly
in and out between missions.
At one point the ship needed tobe fixed, so we were kind of on
(08:06):
the standstill and standby.
In that perspective, all I cansay is for those folks out there
who want to join the military,definitely stay grounded with
good people.
Unfortunately, I had associatedwith some individuals, whether
it be they were in the Navy orcivilian, and looking back I was
(08:30):
like, well, I probably shouldhave hung around or spent time
with more positive, influencedindividuals.
That's why I emphasize to finda mentor or just good people to
associate with, Because I didget involved in some things you
know, not like illegal, you knowper se, because the military
(08:54):
drug test.
But I did get involved in someand some things, looking back,
that you know I should not havedone that because who knows
health-wise how that may or mayhave not affected my health this
day either, physically,physiologically, mental health
(09:15):
related, even spiritually aswell.
So that's important to thinkabout those things.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
It really is, because , as Human beings, we wake up
each day, hopefully, and we havedecisions to make everything
from should I brush my teeth?
Should I wash my face?
Should I take a shower?
What should I wear to, whetherthat's looking for a job or
(09:50):
being employed, going to workwhat to eat, where to get the
food?
We have lots of decisions tomake every day and that can get
overwhelming, especially forindividuals that are looking at
being released fromincarceration.
And I think, with our time,just as human beings, spent on
(10:17):
Earth, we can either be againstpeople that have put in their
time for whatever they've done,because I think it's fair to say
, we all have some type ofskeleton in the closet, if not
many.
I have many, if not many, I havemany.
So I'm not speaking from thepoint of preaching that I'm any
(10:40):
better, because I'm not.
I have plenty of things.
And so to have individuals whohave made decisions at a certain
point and now they've put theirtime in and it's time for that
release to get to those nextsteps, how did that type of work
work?
How did that interest you and Iknow you?
(11:00):
You had, along along the way,before current state, uh, you
know different.
You know milestones.
Uh, along the way where youstart something and not work out
and I I've been in that thatspot.
Can you talk about just, Iguess, the mental health side
and the substance abuse, as wellas your, your career, of your?
(11:23):
You mentioned kind of yourmotto when we were off camera,
talking about you know, eachyear, you know if, as each year
comes to a close, where am I athaving that military mentality
and how?
That has, you know, kind of ledso kind of on parallel paths
the mental health and then thecareer, if you're able to.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Yeah, absolutely, I can elaborate on that.
Yeah, getting out of themilitary kind of rocky that
would be another episode, but Idid end up at the Sheraton
Suites Hotel, which was a goodexperience, helping to define my
culinary background.
Unfortunately, I did not staythere longer than approximately
(12:09):
a year, Just kind of one ofthose things in the military,
you know, if you don't rank up,you know, in the civilian't rank
up, you know in the civilianplatform, let's keep it moving.
So you know, from the culinaryfield I ended up working at a
(12:30):
factory, you know, and thatseemed to be pretty well
progressive-wise, you know, justto do something different and
try to earn some more income.
And then found myself kind ofcycling through jobs at one
point and went back to schooland studied auto mechanics at
one point, just to change thingsup and maybe try to find
(12:53):
something different, career pathwise, because I do like
automotive technology, it's veryfascinating and I guess that
just wasn't for me.
So eventually I got a job at acall center, a very good call
center, actually and I did ayear there, you know, it seemed
(13:19):
pretty good and then it justwasn't enough, something rather
and I'm not a numbers person, soI would tell anybody in the
call center career to have yournumbers well, and then went back
into kind of like factory workand I will say for folks out
(13:43):
there looking for a job, becareful of factory work because
there are people you know withsubstance issues and things of
that matter.
So if you've got issues,reentry or in general, just be
careful.
And then from there I've alwaysbeen involved in the community,
(14:11):
volunteering my time.
Besides the military.
We did humanitarian efforts in2005 with Operation Katrina
between Louisiana andMississippi.
Actually, we were actually thefirst ship after the storm
(14:32):
passed to be there as a supplyship.
And then, you know, landingtroops and we were in joint
efforts with the National Guardhelicopter operations, land
operations.
It was a huge effort.
So I got out and ended upworking with the Salvation Army,
(14:55):
you know, helping them with theculinary aspect and that was an
honor actually to help them out.
And I've also volunteered at alocal food pantry as well.
Like I said, it's important togive back to our community.
(15:19):
And yeah, and over the years,you know, between helping the
community and just kind ofdiscovering you know where I
need to be, where do I fit inthe community, Ended up back at
another factory and at one pointyou know it was third shift, I
believe when I stopped workingthere, I'm just like, well, I
(15:39):
need to do something else.
Like my gifts, my heart is into, I believe, working with people
.
That is very important to me.
So anybody out there you know,definitely find out what you do
best and, just you know, aimhigh for those goals.
Um so, yeah, um yeah, right nowI work at a place doing case
(16:04):
management and, um, it's, it's alot of uh, a lot of need out
there, uh, for re-entry or ornon-re-entry.
I mean people in general.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
People in general.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
Just needing referrals to, like you said,
mental health.
You know I do work with the VAregarding, you know, medical, so
I do appreciate the VA, whatthey've done for me physical and
mental and there's nothingwrong with getting counseling.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
No, yeah, I agree that with the counseling I
whether you think you need it,you want it, don't want it is
something for me that's beenreally a lifesaver in a sense,
kind of being that person, thatindividual that you can talk to,
(17:05):
that will just sit there andlisten and they'll ask questions
If topics come up and arealarming or dangerous, but have
somebody just listen.
I think it's huge.
(17:26):
And one thing that I thinkindividuals may think about you
know, stigma wise around aroundcounseling is, well, I don't
know what I'm gonna say when Iget there, and I think that's
something that I had to get over, and I know people that are
(17:49):
close to me that are you know.
I think that's somethingpossibly in that situation of,
well, what am I going to say?
What are they going to tell me?
Are they going to put me onmedication and have all these
what-ifs?
And there's tons of researchthat says the things that we say
what-if to I think it's 80%,90% of those never even happen.
(18:14):
And so we spend so much timethinking about what-if that if
we could just kind of like I'vehad to do and continue to do is
just get over myself, get overmy ego and just step forward and
say, look, I can't do it on myown and I know for you along the
(18:35):
way faith has been a big partof your life and serving and
giving back to the community.
Can you talk about how that'sreally helped as well?
Kind of a little bit like alittle bit like going to get to
get counseling, but in thatrespect, can you maybe touch on
(18:57):
that from your experience?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
You know I grew up in thechurch.
That's definitely helped, likethe spiritual aspect.
You know it's having thatcomfort.
I haven't lowered my life, Ihaven't lived a perfect life, of
course, you know, but that'sdefinitely helped me over the
(19:20):
years with any pillar orbarriers that I've had, you know
.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Yeah, and so to just talk a minute on kind of
emotions of you know, talk aboutthe military and being happy to
be able to serve with the workthat you do now and, as you're
again continuing to find thingsthat not only benefit the
community but benefit you aswell, how that makes you feel
and how an individual orindividuals watching and
listening may have somethingthat they really are passionate
about.
And they're doing somethingcompletely the opposite.
(20:09):
Maybe start changing maybe someof the ways to get into that
spot, because things we like todo, that we want to do, are
things we're going to do goodand the best at, and we'll
probably stick around a littlebit longer at those types of
(20:31):
employment opportunities versusones that we might not.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Yeah, I'd say the first step is you know if
there's a need, you know ifsomeone needs help.
You know I'd say that'd be themost challenging for anybody,
even myself.
The skill of help, yeah, askingfor help, like if a person even
acknowledges that they needhelp, as opposed to do they need
(20:56):
help, you know, and if they doneed help, do they want or not?
Because you know, I've talkedto other individuals in the
community and you know there'sjust so much help out there,
like they just need to reach,you know, that avenue.
So, whether it be you, me,forces for Voices, the VA, I
(21:22):
could throw a lot of referralsources out there.
They're just waiting for theindividual, like when are they?
ready.
You know, like there's a pointin my life you know I just hey,
I need help with this.
You know, like that pride getsin the way.
You know, in some people's life, you know, once they get past
(21:46):
that pride barrier, you know,like I said, if need be, they
need this specific help.
Like you're a financial expertso you could tell someone a lot
about finances.
You know and have a backgroundin culinary.
You know, maybe someone doesn'tknow how to cook or maybe
(22:09):
someone doesn't have a budget.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
You know, it's just amazing how we're all put
together in this web and network.
Networking is important and Ithink that is so big.
Is that networking?
And I think one of the areas tothink about for our
organization is, you know,looking forward, is to continue
networking.
But continue to network kind ofin the right spot.
It's like where you know we meetsomebody, we come in contact,
(22:40):
but does that fit?
You know kind of what we wantto do as an organization and you
can think of it as a term ofpaying it forward, but then we
can also think of paying it toomuch forward.
Where we do too much, maybe incertain areas and go oh, wait a
minute, we need to get back to,like you mentioned, and precepts
(23:01):
.
So, getting back to beinggrounded and that foundation of
where, where we're at, it's okayto stray a little bit, but
whether it's an organization ora person, you stray too much.
You know, maybe that's insubstances, maybe that's alcohol
, maybe that's alcohol, maybeit's domestic violence, maybe
it's something that is unhealthyand illegal.
(23:24):
Sure, how do we kind of rightthe ship a little bit?
And I know we've had a guest onour show as well as what she
was, our Voices for Voices,ambassador of the year for 2023,
judge Allison Breaux with theHope Corps.
If somebody's going throughthat Department of Corrections
(23:49):
and through that way with her,she's made a huge difference in
the community and I think thatyou don't have to be like, well,
I'm not a leader or I don'thave the finances or I don't
have these things.
Well, just find out what youhave and start there.
And I don't have a militarybackground, you do.
(24:14):
Some of those experiences havebeen and were like and how that
structure has continued tofollow as you're going through
life, and not only for you butfor the people that you impact,
that you help.
And someone might say, well,that's a little bit too much.
(24:34):
Well, it's always that thoughtof, well, if we don't make a
goal, we're not going to moveforward.
So we could have.
You know we had big, big goalsas our followers, our listeners
or donors.
You know that we want to help.
You know, 3 billion people overthe course of my lifetime and
beyond Humongous goal.
(24:54):
And and I think that if wedidn't make that goal, then
maybe some of the strides we'vemade and are coming down the
pike wouldn't have come about,because we may have been maybe
too near sighted on, like, okay,we're going to get to, and
again, we know nobody's perfect.
Anybody that claims it is notcorrect.
(25:23):
Nobody's perfect.
We can try to be.
I think the biggest thing is wecan try to just be in balance
and just be in touch with whatour body and our mind needs.
I think that's the closest anyof us are going to get to being
perfect.
It's like, okay, I need this,okay, I have an appointment in
four weeks, but I really need totalk to somebody this week
(25:45):
because somebody in my familypassed away or some event
impacted them.
I think that's the biggest thingand even for me, being in
active recovery, that I've hadto do, where there's an event
that happens, I've had to calland reschedule and move up an
appointment, and that in itselfis hard to do because it's like
(26:07):
sometimes in this dark spot andthe depression and don't want to
do that and say I don't want topick up the phone and then call
and those things are very minor, but when somebody has certain
diseases, illnesses, it's hardto do.
It's hard to say, well, I'mgoing to get up, I'm going to
(26:27):
brush my teeth, I'm going to geta shower, those things, for
just whatever reason, aretougher.
So it's just how do you manageit as best as you can, and who's
on your team that it's not justus, that we have people we can
reach out to for, uh, for, foradvice, and that that's that's
(26:47):
huge, absolutely so.
We have about a minute leftthis episode.
I think it went faster thanlast week's episode.
Uh, right, so again thank youfor your service to the country.
Thank you for what you're doingfor us at Voices, for Voices,
but in a bigger spotlight forthe community.
For others, we couldn't bewhere we're at today and where
(27:11):
we're going, and some of theindividuals that we're crossing
paths with and going to be ableto share their stories in a
couple different areas wehaven't touched as much as we
should, but we're going to dothat and none of that could have
been done with without you.
So appreciate everybody, youknow, thank you, appreciate you,
(27:34):
I appreciate you so much.
Yes, sir, is there anything else?
You've got about 30 seconds Oneday at a time.
Speaker 2 (27:46):
Like I said, keep positive, keep focused.
I appreciate all our militaryvets and military out there
right now.
I think about them and it'simportant to do so.
Pray prayers out to them.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
Absolutely, and we want to thank you, our listeners
, our viewers.
Checking out our transcriptAgain, we have over 130 episodes
.
Check us out, we have somethingfor everybody.
And again we want to thankJeremiah for joining us this
episode and a previous episode.
(28:22):
And until next time I am justnow Alan Hayes, founder
executive director of Voices forVoices and until next time, be
a voice for you or somebody inneed.
Thank you.
Welcome to the Voices for Voices TV show and podcast.
I am your host, justin AllenHayes, founder and executive
director of Voices for Voices.
Voices for Voices is the numberone ranked podcast and TV show
where people turn to for expertmental health recovery and
(00:22):
career advancement intelligence.
Mental health recovery andcareer advancement intelligence.
Our show is all about teachingyou insanely actionable
techniques that help you prosper, grow your self-worth and
personal brand.
So if you are a high achieveror someone who wants more out of
life, whether mentally,physically or spiritually, make
(00:47):
sure to subscribe to our TV showand podcast right now.
As you can see, our showpublishes episodes every week
that focus on case studies, reallife examples, actionable tips
and in-the-trenches reports andinterviews from subscribers just
(01:08):
like you.
If that sounds like somethingthat could help you grow
personally or professionally,then make sure to join me by
subscribing and also share witha friend or two and your family.
We'd love to have you aboard.
This episode is part two fromthe episode we had last week
(01:32):
with in-studio guest Voices forVoices board member Jeremiah
Tomko, also a US militaryveteran from the US Navy, and we
invite you to check thatepisode out, if you haven't
already, because it is veryinspiring to hear an active and
(01:59):
now US military veteran talkingabout their time in the service,
a US military veteran talkingabout their time in the service,
and it really made me feelproud to be a US citizen here to
have individuals like Jeremiahthat really put their lives on
(02:21):
the line for not just me or you,but for everybody in the
country.
So Jeremiah is with us again instudio, but this episode, what
we're going to do is we're goingto shift from a transition
period, from when Jeremiah leftthe military honorably and
(02:43):
entered civilian life, intowhere he's at today and how.
Mental health, substance abuse,many topics that us at Voices
for Voices are trying to bringlight to trying to knock out the
stigma around help others,around help others.
(03:11):
And I guess first we'll jumpinto a certificate that Jeremiah
received when he was in themilitary, and it is a prevent
certificate and it reads quotethis is to certify that CS3
(03:45):
Tomkoko, jeremiah J, hascompleted the course of
instruction or earning thecertificate to transitioning
into civilian life and how thatled him to where he is now of
(04:06):
leading a life of serving othersin the community with our
organization as a Voices forVoices board member and just as
a human being.
So, jeremiah, thank you forjoining us again.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Thanks, justin, I appreciate you having me back
here.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Yeah, so again, thank you for your service.
Yes, sir, we really appreciatethat and all that you've done
and you continue to do, and theshed light.
I understand that you work alittle bit with the VA, even to
this day, and that's importantfor a number of reasons.
(04:45):
So, as we talk about substanceabuse, reentry, individuals that
have been incarcerated or areincarcerated and are set to be
released at a certain point,there are a lot of things that
(05:06):
an individual at that life stageneeds, just as a human being,
which sometimes, you know us, wetake for granted.
You know, sometimes, in mostcases, I dare to say, an
individual is released from theDepartment of Corrections and
(05:29):
it's like, okay, you're released, and there's not, usually maybe
a plan to go with on the okay,where are they going to live,
how are they going to feedthemselves, how are they going
to work, how are they going toeven look for a job, how are
they going to find a mentor andall those things?
(05:50):
Can you touch on just thattransition as you were exiting
the military, how mental healthkind of maybe impacted that area
of your life and others, andhow that led you to start the
(06:11):
journey to get to where we're attoday?
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Excellent questions.
Regarding this certificate,it's a program that is required,
to my knowledge.
When I was in, you had to gothrough this I don't remember
the exact name of the program,but this was a certificate that
you needed to leave and I thinkI had dinner early because I
(06:40):
didn't get out until 2006.
Okay, because I didn't get outuntil 2006.
Okay, and I think I got out.
Let's see, august was about myout date specifically, so I
think I might have got outaround June because I had some
time saved, so you could eitherhave, you know, got out early or
(07:03):
whatever the plan you wantedwas.
So I did get out and 2006.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And completed my four years audible discharge as well
.
So how did mental health,substance abuse, reentry, how
did those topics and terms kindof take hold in your life?
You know, to complete thisprogram in the military but then
(07:35):
, when you're finished with youractive service, to transition
back into civilian life.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
I mean, yeah, I was 20 to 24 when I was in the
military and you know we werebusy a lot.
I mean, when I was on that ship,uss Patina, we were constantly
in and out between missions.
At one point the ship needed tobe fixed, so we were kind of on
(08:06):
the standstill and standby.
In that perspective, all I cansay is for those folks out there
who want to join the military,definitely stay grounded with
good people.
Unfortunately, I had associatedwith some individuals, whether
it be they were in the Navy orcivilian, and looking back I was
(08:30):
like, well, I probably shouldhave hung around or spent time
with more positive, influencedindividuals.
That's why I emphasize to finda mentor or just good people to
associate with, Because I didget involved in some things you
know, not like illegal, you knowper se, because the military
(08:54):
drug test.
But I did get involved in someand some things, looking back,
that you know I should not havedone that because who knows
health-wise how that may or mayhave not affected my health this
day either, physically,physiologically, mental health
(09:15):
related, even spiritually aswell.
So that's important to thinkabout those things.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
It really is, because , as Human beings, we wake up
each day, hopefully, and we havedecisions to make everything
from should I brush my teeth?
Should I wash my face?
Should I take a shower?
What should I wear to, whetherthat's looking for a job or
(09:50):
being employed, going to workwhat to eat, where to get the
food?
We have lots of decisions tomake every day and that can get
overwhelming, especially forindividuals that are looking at
being released fromincarceration.
And I think, with our time,just as human beings, spent on
(10:17):
Earth, we can either be againstpeople that have put in their
time for whatever they've done,because I think it's fair to say
, we all have some type ofskeleton in the closet, if not
many.
I have many, if not many, I havemany.
So I'm not speaking from thepoint of preaching that I'm any
(10:40):
better, because I'm not.
I have plenty of things.
And so to have individuals whohave made decisions at a certain
point and now they've put theirtime in and it's time for that
release to get to those nextsteps, how did that type of work
work?
How did that interest you and Iknow you?
(11:00):
You had, along along the way,before current state, uh, you
know different.
You know milestones.
Uh, along the way where youstart something and not work out
and I I've been in that thatspot.
Can you talk about just, Iguess, the mental health side
and the substance abuse, as wellas your, your career, of your?
(11:23):
You mentioned kind of yourmotto when we were off camera,
talking about you know, eachyear, you know if, as each year
comes to a close, where am I athaving that military mentality
and how?
That has, you know, kind of ledso kind of on parallel paths
the mental health and then thecareer, if you're able to.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Yeah, absolutely, I can elaborate on that.
Yeah, getting out of themilitary kind of rocky that
would be another episode, but Idid end up at the Sheraton
Suites Hotel, which was a goodexperience, helping to define my
culinary background.
Unfortunately, I did not staythere longer than approximately
(12:09):
a year, Just kind of one ofthose things in the military,
you know, if you don't rank up,you know, in the civilian't rank
up, you know in the civilianplatform, let's keep it moving.
So you know, from the culinaryfield I ended up working at a
(12:30):
factory, you know, and thatseemed to be pretty well
progressive-wise, you know, justto do something different and
try to earn some more income.
And then found myself kind ofcycling through jobs at one
point and went back to schooland studied auto mechanics at
one point, just to change thingsup and maybe try to find
(12:53):
something different, career pathwise, because I do like
automotive technology, it's veryfascinating and I guess that
just wasn't for me.
So eventually I got a job at acall center, a very good call
center, actually and I did ayear there, you know, it seemed
(13:19):
pretty good and then it justwasn't enough, something rather
and I'm not a numbers person, soI would tell anybody in the
call center career to have yournumbers well, and then went back
into kind of like factory workand I will say for folks out
(13:43):
there looking for a job, becareful of factory work because
there are people you know withsubstance issues and things of
that matter.
So if you've got issues,reentry or in general, just be
careful.
And then from there I've alwaysbeen involved in the community,
(14:11):
volunteering my time.
Besides the military.
We did humanitarian efforts in2005 with Operation Katrina
between Louisiana andMississippi.
Actually, we were actually thefirst ship after the storm
(14:32):
passed to be there as a supplyship.
And then, you know, landingtroops and we were in joint
efforts with the National Guardhelicopter operations, land
operations.
It was a huge effort.
So I got out and ended upworking with the Salvation Army,
(14:55):
you know, helping them with theculinary aspect and that was an
honor actually to help them out.
And I've also volunteered at alocal food pantry as well.
Like I said, it's important togive back to our community.
(15:19):
And yeah, and over the years,you know, between helping the
community and just kind ofdiscovering you know where I
need to be, where do I fit inthe community, Ended up back at
another factory and at one pointyou know it was third shift, I
believe when I stopped workingthere, I'm just like, well, I
(15:39):
need to do something else.
Like my gifts, my heart is into, I believe, working with people
.
That is very important to me.
So anybody out there you know,definitely find out what you do
best and, just you know, aimhigh for those goals.
Um so, yeah, um yeah, right nowI work at a place doing case
(16:04):
management and, um, it's, it's alot of uh, a lot of need out
there, uh, for re-entry or ornon-re-entry.
I mean people in general.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
People in general.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
Just needing referrals to, like you said,
mental health.
You know I do work with the VAregarding, you know, medical, so
I do appreciate the VA, whatthey've done for me physical and
mental and there's nothingwrong with getting counseling.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
No, yeah, I agree that with the counseling I
whether you think you need it,you want it, don't want it is
something for me that's beenreally a lifesaver in a sense,
kind of being that person, thatindividual that you can talk to,
(17:05):
that will just sit there andlisten and they'll ask questions
If topics come up and arealarming or dangerous, but have
somebody just listen.
I think it's huge.
(17:26):
And one thing that I thinkindividuals may think about you
know, stigma wise around aroundcounseling is, well, I don't
know what I'm gonna say when Iget there, and I think that's
something that I had to get over, and I know people that are
(17:49):
close to me that are you know.
I think that's somethingpossibly in that situation of,
well, what am I going to say?
What are they going to tell me?
Are they going to put me onmedication and have all these
what-ifs?
And there's tons of researchthat says the things that we say
what-if to I think it's 80%,90% of those never even happen.
(18:14):
And so we spend so much timethinking about what-if that if
we could just kind of like I'vehad to do and continue to do is
just get over myself, get overmy ego and just step forward and
say, look, I can't do it on myown and I know for you along the
(18:35):
way faith has been a big partof your life and serving and
giving back to the community.
Can you talk about how that'sreally helped as well?
Kind of a little bit like alittle bit like going to get to
get counseling, but in thatrespect, can you maybe touch on
(18:57):
that from your experience?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
You know I grew up in thechurch.
That's definitely helped, likethe spiritual aspect.
You know it's having thatcomfort.
I haven't lowered my life, Ihaven't lived a perfect life, of
course, you know, but that'sdefinitely helped me over the
(19:20):
years with any pillar orbarriers that I've had, you know
.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Yeah, and so to just talk a minute on kind of
emotions of you know, talk aboutthe military and being happy to
be able to serve with the workthat you do now and, as you're
again continuing to find thingsthat not only benefit the
community but benefit you aswell, how that makes you feel
and how an individual orindividuals watching and
listening may have somethingthat they really are passionate
about.
And they're doing somethingcompletely the opposite.
(20:09):
Maybe start changing maybe someof the ways to get into that
spot, because things we like todo, that we want to do, are
things we're going to do goodand the best at, and we'll
probably stick around a littlebit longer at those types of
(20:31):
employment opportunities versusones that we might not.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Yeah, I'd say the first step is you know if
there's a need, you know ifsomeone needs help.
You know I'd say that'd be themost challenging for anybody,
even myself.
The skill of help, yeah, askingfor help, like if a person even
acknowledges that they needhelp, as opposed to do they need
(20:56):
help, you know, and if they doneed help, do they want or not?
Because you know, I've talkedto other individuals in the
community and you know there'sjust so much help out there,
like they just need to reach,you know, that avenue.
So, whether it be you, me,forces for Voices, the VA, I
(21:22):
could throw a lot of referralsources out there.
They're just waiting for theindividual, like when are they?
ready.
You know, like there's a pointin my life you know I just hey,
I need help with this.
You know, like that pride getsin the way.
You know, in some people's life, you know, once they get past
(21:46):
that pride barrier, you know,like I said, if need be, they
need this specific help.
Like you're a financial expertso you could tell someone a lot
about finances.
You know and have a backgroundin culinary.
You know, maybe someone doesn'tknow how to cook or maybe
(22:09):
someone doesn't have a budget.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
You know, it's just amazing how we're all put
together in this web and network.
Networking is important and Ithink that is so big.
Is that networking?
And I think one of the areas tothink about for our
organization is, you know,looking forward, is to continue
networking.
But continue to network kind ofin the right spot.
It's like where you know we meetsomebody, we come in contact,
(22:40):
but does that fit?
You know kind of what we wantto do as an organization and you
can think of it as a term ofpaying it forward, but then we
can also think of paying it toomuch forward.
Where we do too much, maybe incertain areas and go oh, wait a
minute, we need to get back to,like you mentioned, and precepts
(23:01):
.
So, getting back to beinggrounded and that foundation of
where, where we're at, it's okayto stray a little bit, but
whether it's an organization ora person, you stray too much.
You know, maybe that's insubstances, maybe that's alcohol
, maybe that's alcohol, maybeit's domestic violence, maybe
it's something that is unhealthyand illegal.
(23:24):
Sure, how do we kind of rightthe ship a little bit?
And I know we've had a guest onour show as well as what she
was, our Voices for Voices,ambassador of the year for 2023,
judge Allison Breaux with theHope Corps.
If somebody's going throughthat Department of Corrections
(23:49):
and through that way with her,she's made a huge difference in
the community and I think thatyou don't have to be like, well,
I'm not a leader or I don'thave the finances or I don't
have these things.
Well, just find out what youhave and start there.
And I don't have a militarybackground, you do.
(24:14):
Some of those experiences havebeen and were like and how that
structure has continued tofollow as you're going through
life, and not only for you butfor the people that you impact,
that you help.
And someone might say, well,that's a little bit too much.
(24:34):
Well, it's always that thoughtof, well, if we don't make a
goal, we're not going to moveforward.
So we could have.
You know we had big, big goalsas our followers, our listeners
or donors.
You know that we want to help.
You know, 3 billion people overthe course of my lifetime and
beyond Humongous goal.
(24:54):
And and I think that if wedidn't make that goal, then
maybe some of the strides we'vemade and are coming down the
pike wouldn't have come about,because we may have been maybe
too near sighted on, like, okay,we're going to get to, and
again, we know nobody's perfect.
Anybody that claims it is notcorrect.
(25:23):
Nobody's perfect.
We can try to be.
I think the biggest thing is wecan try to just be in balance
and just be in touch with whatour body and our mind needs.
I think that's the closest anyof us are going to get to being
perfect.
It's like, okay, I need this,okay, I have an appointment in
four weeks, but I really need totalk to somebody this week
(25:45):
because somebody in my familypassed away or some event
impacted them.
I think that's the biggest thingand even for me, being in
active recovery, that I've hadto do, where there's an event
that happens, I've had to calland reschedule and move up an
appointment, and that in itselfis hard to do because it's like
(26:07):
sometimes in this dark spot andthe depression and don't want to
do that and say I don't want topick up the phone and then call
and those things are very minor, but when somebody has certain
diseases, illnesses, it's hardto do.
It's hard to say, well, I'mgoing to get up, I'm going to
(26:27):
brush my teeth, I'm going to geta shower, those things, for
just whatever reason, aretougher.
So it's just how do you manageit as best as you can, and who's
on your team that it's not justus, that we have people we can
reach out to for, uh, for, foradvice, and that that's that's
(26:47):
huge, absolutely so.
We have about a minute leftthis episode.
I think it went faster thanlast week's episode.
Uh, right, so again thank youfor your service to the country.
Thank you for what you're doingfor us at Voices, for Voices,
but in a bigger spotlight forthe community.
For others, we couldn't bewhere we're at today and where
(27:11):
we're going, and some of theindividuals that we're crossing
paths with and going to be ableto share their stories in a
couple different areas wehaven't touched as much as we
should, but we're going to dothat and none of that could have
been done with without you.
So appreciate everybody, youknow, thank you, appreciate you,
(27:34):
I appreciate you so much.
Yes, sir, is there anything else?
You've got about 30 seconds Oneday at a time.
Speaker 2 (27:46):
Like I said, keep positive, keep focused.
I appreciate all our militaryvets and military out there
right now.
I think about them and it'simportant to do so.
Pray prayers out to them.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
Absolutely, and we want to thank you, our listeners
, our viewers.
Checking out our transcriptAgain, we have over 130 episodes
.
Check us out, we have somethingfor everybody.
And again we want to thankJeremiah for joining us this
episode and a previous episode.
(28:22):
And until next time I am justnow Alan Hayes, founder
executive director of Voices forVoices and until next time, be
a voice for you or somebody inneed.
Thank you.
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