Warrior Getaways and the Walking Wounded Warrior Outreach
Warrior Getaways, sponsored by the ministry of Joni and Friends, occur twice a year in the fall. One in Maryland, for our east coast families, and one in Texas for our southwest families. These retreats are not only for the Warrior, but also for his or her caregiver and their entire family. Spouses and children are affected by the impact of PTS (post traumatic stress) and TBI (traumatic brain injury) just as much as the Warrior. The effects of war are devastating to all involved.
Our Walking Wounded Warrior Outreach is our local effort to engage and come 
alongside Warriors in the southwest Ohio area. We hold regular gatherings at a local coffee shop along with special programming, always emphasizing the one-on-one relationships between Warrior and civilian that are key to healing.
Conversations with Warriors these past years have often turned to the horror and trauma of “collateral damage”, better known as civilian casualties of war. Unfortunately, war is an equal opportunity, indiscriminate destroyer of human life with no regard to age, gender, or civilian/ military status. The damage created is not only to flesh and bone, but to mind and soul as well. The following are some of the observations we have gleaned in our work with Wounded Warriors:
- Injured Warriors deeply desire and long for healing and understanding.
- Most civilians do not have any understanding of what happens in combat to a Warrior. Unfortunately we simply do not know, yet we want to help. This often leads to a disconnect between Warrior and civilian that often results in inadvertent misunderstanding and distancing due to misdirected attempts to assist.
- Many civilians sincerely desire to help. To walk alongside an injured Warrior and to carry their burden for a little while, to become a “Paraclete” to them and to walk the extra mile with them. They simply do not know how, or where, to start.
- If injured Warriors are to truly heal and successfully reintegrate back into a civilian role, then
civilians will need to step up and do some of the heavy lifting side by side with our Warriors. The Warrior/ Veteran community needs to teach civilians who want to assist in their recovery how to do a better job. And those same Warriors need to accept those who want to help them and not push them away. - It will ultimately take the servant civilians in our world to take the first step to assist, and be willing to accept and endure rejection now and again, as we try to make the Warrior’s world a better place for them to return to. With God’s grace and the assistance of the Holy Spirit, a fulfilling life can be achieved again.
It is our desire to serve the Warrior community in any way we can to help them achieve a fulfilling life after war and in relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is our goal to help see Warriors and families restored and futures filled with purpose found only in a life with Jesus as their commander.
