Resilience Forge Start Up Campaign
Donation protected
Welcome to Resilience Forge.
Mission Statement
To foster a resilient spirit among wounded warriors, soldiers, veterans, and their families by introducing them to skills associated with smithing and related craft, and to create resources for teaching these skills, with the greater community in mind.
Background
In 2013, Nate Bocker, an active duty US Army sergeant, decided that he would like to give back to the wounded veteran community by sharing a craft that he loved – bladesmithing. While knife making in general is common using stock removal (the grinding of pre-cut material), the art of forging an unshaped piece of steel is not as common. Nate felt that teaching a craft that both gave these soldiers a sense of accomplishment, as well as a skill set that could be used in life, he could do just a little bit to help. In October of 2013, Blade Therapy (aptly named by his first student) was born.
Each student started with a bar of steel, which they hand forged, shaped, ground and sanded. They then made the handles from blocks of assorted wood and other materials. Finally, they made their sheaths, either from leather or Kydex. By October 2014, the Blade Therapy group had grown, and 15 students had successfully completed at least one knife, with many of them completing more. Beyond the completion of knives, more things were forged- bonds. It was also soon evident that this operation had grown beyond the garage and his private funding. That is when Resilience Forge began to take shape.
Over the past few months, we have been developing contacts with medical professionals from several different fields. All of these professionals are familiar with smithing, both professionally and as a hobby, and all have agreed that there are many benefits to be had from partnering the forging process with medical practices that can use it in the rehabilitative process.
Goals
With the majority of the students coming from the Warrior Transition Battalion, located on Fort Belvoir, VA, our students were dealing primarily with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), however our students have a wide range of other disabilities, all of which we strive to accommodate. Unfortunately, working out of a garage, we have limited space. Our goal is to find a location that is accessible to all of our students, and their needs, as well as large enough to accommodate the equipment and tools to continue to assist more of our veterans, and their families. We are currently in the process of establishing ourselves as a non-profit organization, which will allow us to secure grants and tax deductible donations.
Future
While we are currently focused on our short term goals of achieving our non-profit status, and expanding our reach, there are more long term goals that we are also working on. Since Fort Belvoir is currently the home of the military’s primary PTSD/TBI units, we would like to always maintain our headquarters in this area. At the same time, we are looking at expanding our reach nationwide. One way to accomplish that is to use our founding branch of Resilience Forge to establish a “best practices” on teaching smithing to those who have different needs. To do this, we have reached out to the American Bladesmith Society, who in turn has reached out to its members. With their knowledge and skills, we can potentially expand the project nationally. Future plans also include retreats, where our students can come to a location, along with their families; additional skill set classes (woodworking, leatherworking, etc…); partnering with medical practices who see the value in using craft as a vehicle for multifaceted rehabilitation; and global domination after the zombie apocalypse.
How You Can Help
Right now, Resilience Forge is funded primarily by our family, along with some small supply donations brought in by students. No student is charged for anything. From the steel to the sheath, this class is completely free to all students. As we continue to grow, and as we wait for our non-profit status, we are finding that we need donation assistance. There are several ways that you can donate:
1. GoFundMe. We have a campaign open that accepts monetary donations. These donations will be used to assist in setting up the non-profit, buying supplies, and finding a new location. An accounting of how these funds are spent will be available on request.
2. Supplies. We do have a “wish list” available on request, however, since the majority of the items on the list are specialty, you can make a monetary donation, ear marked for a certain item.
3. Gift cards. We do host events for our students, so we do appreciate gift cards. The majority of our students do not drive, so we provide food for these events. Gift cards for locations like Subway, Pizza Hut, Domino’s, etc… come in very handy. (If sending a gift card for any other restaurant, please make sure that there is a location within 10 miles of zip code 22060)
4. Share. Please share this project, and our GoFundMe campaign with your friends and family via email, social media, and word of mouth.
Mission Statement
To foster a resilient spirit among wounded warriors, soldiers, veterans, and their families by introducing them to skills associated with smithing and related craft, and to create resources for teaching these skills, with the greater community in mind.
Background
In 2013, Nate Bocker, an active duty US Army sergeant, decided that he would like to give back to the wounded veteran community by sharing a craft that he loved – bladesmithing. While knife making in general is common using stock removal (the grinding of pre-cut material), the art of forging an unshaped piece of steel is not as common. Nate felt that teaching a craft that both gave these soldiers a sense of accomplishment, as well as a skill set that could be used in life, he could do just a little bit to help. In October of 2013, Blade Therapy (aptly named by his first student) was born.
Each student started with a bar of steel, which they hand forged, shaped, ground and sanded. They then made the handles from blocks of assorted wood and other materials. Finally, they made their sheaths, either from leather or Kydex. By October 2014, the Blade Therapy group had grown, and 15 students had successfully completed at least one knife, with many of them completing more. Beyond the completion of knives, more things were forged- bonds. It was also soon evident that this operation had grown beyond the garage and his private funding. That is when Resilience Forge began to take shape.
Over the past few months, we have been developing contacts with medical professionals from several different fields. All of these professionals are familiar with smithing, both professionally and as a hobby, and all have agreed that there are many benefits to be had from partnering the forging process with medical practices that can use it in the rehabilitative process.
Goals
With the majority of the students coming from the Warrior Transition Battalion, located on Fort Belvoir, VA, our students were dealing primarily with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), however our students have a wide range of other disabilities, all of which we strive to accommodate. Unfortunately, working out of a garage, we have limited space. Our goal is to find a location that is accessible to all of our students, and their needs, as well as large enough to accommodate the equipment and tools to continue to assist more of our veterans, and their families. We are currently in the process of establishing ourselves as a non-profit organization, which will allow us to secure grants and tax deductible donations.
Future
While we are currently focused on our short term goals of achieving our non-profit status, and expanding our reach, there are more long term goals that we are also working on. Since Fort Belvoir is currently the home of the military’s primary PTSD/TBI units, we would like to always maintain our headquarters in this area. At the same time, we are looking at expanding our reach nationwide. One way to accomplish that is to use our founding branch of Resilience Forge to establish a “best practices” on teaching smithing to those who have different needs. To do this, we have reached out to the American Bladesmith Society, who in turn has reached out to its members. With their knowledge and skills, we can potentially expand the project nationally. Future plans also include retreats, where our students can come to a location, along with their families; additional skill set classes (woodworking, leatherworking, etc…); partnering with medical practices who see the value in using craft as a vehicle for multifaceted rehabilitation; and global domination after the zombie apocalypse.
How You Can Help
Right now, Resilience Forge is funded primarily by our family, along with some small supply donations brought in by students. No student is charged for anything. From the steel to the sheath, this class is completely free to all students. As we continue to grow, and as we wait for our non-profit status, we are finding that we need donation assistance. There are several ways that you can donate:
1. GoFundMe. We have a campaign open that accepts monetary donations. These donations will be used to assist in setting up the non-profit, buying supplies, and finding a new location. An accounting of how these funds are spent will be available on request.
2. Supplies. We do have a “wish list” available on request, however, since the majority of the items on the list are specialty, you can make a monetary donation, ear marked for a certain item.
3. Gift cards. We do host events for our students, so we do appreciate gift cards. The majority of our students do not drive, so we provide food for these events. Gift cards for locations like Subway, Pizza Hut, Domino’s, etc… come in very handy. (If sending a gift card for any other restaurant, please make sure that there is a location within 10 miles of zip code 22060)
4. Share. Please share this project, and our GoFundMe campaign with your friends and family via email, social media, and word of mouth.
Organizer
Cass Bocker
Organizer
Fort Belvoir, VA
