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SoldierStrong is honored to announce it has received a grant from the Disabled Veterans National Foundation (DVNF) for $25,000, which will provide operational support for two of the organization’s programs to provide revolutionary medical technology and therapy to Veterans Affairs hospitals and other medical centers across the country. These programs include the groundbreaking virtual reality system, BraveMind, that aids in the treatment of veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress (PTS), and the SoldierSuit, state-of-the-art rehabilitation and powered prosthetic technologies that help injured and paralyzed veterans stand and walk again.

The Disabled Veterans National Foundation (DVNF) provides support to disabled and at-risk veterans who return home with physical and psychological wounds. The organization carries out its mission by providing grants to veteran organizations, curated veteran-specific, post-traumatic stress (PTS) and suicide prevention resources and providing supplemental assistance to homeless and low-income veterans.

Chris Meek, co-founder and chairman of SoldierStrong said, “Generous support from organizations like DVNF play an integral role in SoldierStrong’s ability to provide veterans with life-changing technology and therapy freeing them from the visible and invisible wounds of war. Our organizations’ shared commitment to change the lives of veterans is reflected in this generous grant. Thank you to DVNF for supporting urgently needed innovation and in particular, our work to reach veterans where they are and to provide alternative treatment options. We are incredibly grateful.”

Joseph VanFonda (USMC Sgt. Maj. Ret.), CEO of Disabled Veterans National Foundation said, “I believe in the BraveMind virtual reality system. SoldierStrong continues to strive for alternate treatments that provide a lasting effective way in treating our military veterans who still face and hold on to the traumatic effects of combat”.

The BraveMind system, developed by the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies, delivers prolonged exposure therapy, the practice of recalling a troubling memory while talking through its nuances with a licensed therapist. This evidence-based method for treating PTS allows therapists to recreate the scene of the veteran’s troubling memory in a virtual reality headset. It safely enables the veteran to relive and deconstruct that memory to better cope with the trauma that it created. BraveMind’s technology allows therapists to select a scenario based on a veteran’s traumatic experience and customize it to their unique needs in real time.

SoldierSuit exoskeletons are used in the rehabilitation of paralyzed individuals who experience mobility setbacks from strokes, spinal cord, and traumatic brain injuries to help them regain the ability to stand and walk again.

SoldierStrong has donated more than $5.2 million of medical devices to help injured veterans, including 24 BraveMind systems and 29 SoldierSuits to VA hospitals, other medical facilities and individual veterans since late 2019.

Sylvie Légère, social entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist, and co-founder of The Policy Circle, has joined the advisory board of SoldierStrong, chairman and co-founder Chris Meek said today.

“Sylvie Légère is about developing innovative solutions that unite people for the common good and advance the next generation of changemakers,” Meek said. “Sylvie is also a member of the Board of the Chicago Cubs Charities who mobilizes the power of sport to champion youth, families, and communities. We’re thrilled that Sylvie is bringing her energy, spirit of serving the greater good, and unique perspective to SoldierStrong and our mission.”

Légère and her husband, Todd Ricketts, whose family is the majority owner of the Chicago Cubs, recently demonstrated their commitment and compassion for America’s veterans by donating an Indego ® exoskeleton to SoldierStrong, the national nonprofit organization that is dedicated to improving the lives of the nation’s military veterans by providing them with revolutionary medical technologies to help them take their next steps forward in their post-service lives.

SoldierStrong presented the device to Tyler Densford, a paralyzed veteran who had been chosen to participate in a four-month program to test a bionic walking system through the St. Louis Veteran’s Administration in 2020, but the study was cut short due to the COVID pandemic. Thanks to the donation to SoldierStrong, Densford is able to walk again and enjoy a higher quality of life.

Beyond her philanthropic efforts, Légère co-founded The Policy Circle in 2015 and serves as the board chair. The nonprofit, non-partisan organization is designed “to educate, engage and empower women to be a force for positive change in their communities.” The organization emphasizes “fact-based civil discourse” as a preferred approach to productive civic involvement and change, and encourages members to “go beyond the headlines and take ownership of the issues.”

Légère is a Québécoise by birth, but American by naturalization. She earned a bachelor’s in management information systems from the University of Ottawa and a master’s degree in computer science with a specialization in the learning sciences from Northwestern University. She recently published her first book, Trust Your Voice: A Roadmap to Focus and Influence and is a frequently sought-after speaker focused on leadership and civic engagement. A healthy living advocate, Légère enjoys running, cycling, camping, and traveling with her husband and their three children.

“I am pleased and excited to join the SoldierStrong advisory board and put my experience to work helping our nation’s veterans,” Légère said. “Our country owes so much to our veterans, and I hope my efforts will substantially and positively impact as many veterans as I possibly can.”

NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver Graham Rahal has joined the advisory board of SoldierStrong, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of the nation’s military veterans by providing them with revolutionary medical technologies to help them take their next steps forward in their lives after service.

“Graham Rahal has played a unique role for SoldierStrong for years – both as a generous fundraiser on and off the track and as an ambassador who graciously shares his platform to share our organization’s story with more and more people each year,” said Chris Meek, SoldierStrong co-founder and chairman. “Graham is more than a fearless racecar driver. He’s a proven entrepreneur and an extraordinary philanthropist. His decision to join our advisory board further demonstrates his deep, personal commitment to the brave men and women who have sacrificed so much in defense of our liberties and security.”

Rahal and his wife, Courtney, support SoldierStrong through their charity, the Graham and Courtney Rahal Foundation. Since 2018, the foundation’s Drivers Tournament and Vino For Vets initiatives have raised $630,683. As part of the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team he also raises funds for SoldierStrong through the Turns for Troops program. Through its generosity as the team’s major sponsor, United Rental donates $50 to SoldierStrong for every lap that Rahal completes during the racing season. In 2021, Rahal completed 1,587 laps, raising $79,350 for SoldierStrong. Since its inception in 2016, Turns For Troops has raised $1,465,027.

“I am blessed to have a career that I’m not only passionate about but that also allows me to benefit veterans – America’s true heroes – in a life-changing way. I’m grateful to be in the company of organizations like SoldierStrong and United Rentals in our commitment to give back to our country’s veterans who provide us with the power of hope and show us what it means to persevere,” said Rahal, who has six wins and 28 podium finishes during his INDYCAR SERIES career.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is co-owned by Graham’s father, Bobby Rahal, winner of the 1986 Indianapolis 500. In 2007, in just his third Champ Car race, Graham Rahal became the youngest-ever podium finisher in Champ Car history after finishing second in the Grand Prix of Houston. He made his 2008 series debut in the season’s second race, which he won to become the youngest driver at the time to win a major American open-wheel race at age 19 years, 93 days. He began the 2009 season by taking pole position at St. Petersburg, becoming the series’ youngest-ever polesitter aged 20 years, 90 days.

He drove in his first Indianapolis 500 in 2008 as the merger of competing racing series resulted in the creation of the INDYCAR SERIES. He has finished in third place at Indianapolis in 2011 and 2020 and has finished in the top 10 in four of his 14 starts at the fabled speedway. Rahal also was a co-driver of the winning Rolex 24 at Daytona car in 2011.