Nathan Graeser is both a Social Worker and an Army Chaplain in the California National Guard. He serves on numerous local and national boards and is a national expert on policies and

programs for supporting service-members transitioning out of the military. He has led multiple Veteran initiatives including Warrior Bards, the Los Angeles Veterans Collaborative and, most recently with Southern California Grantmakers to build the first county-wide Veteran Peer Access Network. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, he has worked tirelessly to counsel hundreds of veterans and their families who return home from war. He obtained a Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary, a Masters in Social Work, and a Doctorate in Social Work from the University of Southern California. Most recently, he was called up for the protests in downtown Los Angeles and a Balkan deployment with the 79th Infantry Brigade in December 2018. He lives in Highland Park in an eco-friendly house with chickens, bees and three small humans ages seven, four, and two. His rock star wife, Rachel, makes it all possible.

 

The PsychArmor resource for this week is the series of courses for communities serving veterans. This series of courses provides guidance on leadership and collaborative strategies for community impact.  To address the needs of Veterans and their families, thousands of nonprofits, government agencies, and private organizations stand ready to offer services and support at the local and national levels. Sponsored by National Veterans Intermediary (NVI), the PsychArmor® courses provide a smart and useful framework for guiding social movement. This effective framework is inspired by collective impact theory and informed by the culture and values of the military and Veteran Community. These courses will teach you an overview of collective impact, as well as leadership strategies for increasing collaboration and activating community support for Veterans and their families.

 

This episode is sponsored by PsychArmor, the premier education and learning ecosystem specializing in military culture content. PsychArmor offers an online e-learning laboratory with custom training options for organizations.

Our theme music Don’t Kill the Messenger was written and performed by Navy Veteran Jerry Maniscalco, in cooperation with Operation Encore, a non profit committed to supporting singer/songwriter and musicians across the military and Veteran communities.