Lois Dawn Fritz with Cecelia the horse.
Courtesy of New Freedom Farm
Omar Marquez-Algarin discovered that art relieves his stress
© Nicki Marquez
Jessica Johnson is transitioning to civilian skills with Helmets to Hardhats
Courtesy of © Helmets to Hardhats
Service, honor and respect
Costco members show reverence to veterans and their families
Interdependence and teamwork
After their time in the military is over, many transitioning vets struggle to find their footing in civilian life. That’s why Helmets to Hardhats (helmetstohardhats.org; Facebook.com/helmetstohardhats) was launched in 2002. Since its inception, the Washington, D.C.–based organization has helped more than 42,000 veterans, reservists, active-duty military service members and National Guard members across all 50 states transition back into civilian life. The organization does this through helping vets gain construction-industry skills that can lead to lucrative careers.
“Helmets to Hardhats changed my life in 2005,” says Martin Helms, a Costco member who works as the organization’s executive director and also actively serves in the National Guard. “I not only learned a valuable trade as an electrician, I discovered that this type of organized labor offers much of the same camaraderie that I experienced with my brothers and sisters in uniform. It is not only about getting the job done; it requires interdependence and teamwork.”
Participation in the program requires no prior construction-related experience. To help vets gain financial stability quickly, Helmets to Hardhats offers many “earn-while-you-learn” registered apprenticeship opportunities that mix classroom instruction and on-the-job training. Apprenticeships last three to five years.—Will Fifield
Healing together
Navy veteran Lois Dawn Fritz has a soft spot for those who’ve suffered trauma—humans and horses alike.
The Costco member is founder and director of New Freedom Farm (newfreedomfarm.org), located in Buchanan, Virginia. The farm’s mission is to assist veterans and first responders with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance-use issues, traumatic brain injuries and other conditions by linking them with horses.
Clint Cash, an E-5 sergeant, served as a cavalry scout on the Afghanistan–Pakistan border from 2009 to 2010. After returning home, Cash, who lives in Roanoke, Virginia, with his wife, Tiffany, suffered from bouts of anxiety, depression, anger, extreme stress and memory issues due to PTSD, along with a traumatic brain injury.
Cole, a male horse at New Freedom Farm, faced his own trauma after he suffered abuse in a cockfighting ring before being rescued.
When Cash and Cole met at the farm in 2021, they formed a special bond. “I watched [Cash] progress and change,” Fritz says. With Cash by his side, Cole went from avoiding touch to enjoying human interaction. “When I first met him, he did not trust other people,” Cash recalls. “But he came to [trust] me. It’s made me feel good.”—Dan Jones
Patriot Art Foundation
When artist Mary Whyte opened an exhibit of paintings she had created for her book We the People: Portraits of Veterans in America (University of South Carolina Press, 2019; not available at Costco) at the City Gallery in Charleston, South Carolina, it had a profound effect on observers and on Whyte.
“The response, particularly from the veterans, was so strong,” says the Costco member from her home in Charleston. “That’s when I realized how powerful art can be in connecting us and as a means of expression and, in some cases, healing.”
The positive response inspired her to launch the Patriot Art Foundation (patriotartfoundation.org) in 2019. Whyte teaches eight-week art classes via Zoom to veterans through regional Veterans Affairs chapters for two hours a week. The goals are to value the veterans’ service and their return to civilian life, provide art classes for self-expression and share their stories with the public via virtual exhibitions and online forums.
As one veteran told Whyte, “Art gives me something to feel proud about.”
Whyte says, “I don’t think there’s any better gift you can give a person than giving them something that makes them feel good about themselves.”—Steve Fisher
