PAWS for a Cause
Donation protected
My name is Cole Thomas Lyle, an 8-year Marine Corps veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom.
While overseas, I had experiences that made it difficult to effectively transition back into civilian life. When I returned from Afghanistan, I began to experience a lot of difficulties not only with myself but with my family. Frequent nightmares, moodswings, and anxiety attacks - all of which were a result of my service - made it hard to resume normal life. I utilized the Department of Veteran's Affairs and was prescribed pills while simultaneously receiving counseling from what are called "Vet Centers". After roughly a year and a half down this path things had not gotten any better. I was going through a divorce, got discharged from active service, didn't have a job, and wasn't in school. To make matters worse: I was now addicted to my medications that had only exascerbated the nightmares; the same pills that had caused a few of my personal friends to commit suicide as a result of the same cycle of symptoms and abuse.
After nearly becoming a statistic, I decided I wanted to seek a different path. I had a friend who utilized a service dog that helped with symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, but further research lead me to the fact that the VA does not provide them. I sought out non-profits like the Warrior Canine Connection, K9's for Warriors, Semper Fido, and Patriot Paws for help, only to find that wait times were a year and sometimes more. So I decided to go it alone. In conjunction with the advice of a for-profit trainer of dogs for PTS accredited by Assistance Dogs International, I used what money I had left after my divorce and purchased Kaya, my GSD service-dog. I had her obedience trained by one trainer, then subsequently trained by a specialist to assist with waking me up from nightmares and stopped anxiety attacks in their tracks. All told? $10k of my own money.
I was perfectly willing to accept the fact that I had to shoulder my own service-related recovery expenses myself, but as it happens, God had other plans. Watch the story about how I used my story to help other veterans here:
http://insider.foxnews.com/2016/03/17/paws-act-would-provide-wounded-warriors-service-dogs
When I started PAWS (an acronym for "Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers), quite frankly I held the same belief that most people do: that one person without funding or an organization behind him couldn't get Congress to do much of anything. But the idea was simple (and sellable) enough. I'm not advocating for every veteran with PTS to receive a service-dog, I simply want those veterans who have already tried the drugs and counseling and are still symptomatic to have another option when the first two don't work.
Most of that information was included in a website I created (www.pawsact.com), and I started some creative social media to increase awareness and lobby members of Congress from the new media angle (see: @kayalyle on Instagram and "Kaya Lyle" on FB). I was taking flights (oftentimes last-minute) to DC several times a month in order to lobby those that needed convincing. You see, my friends working for Congressman as staffers were doing phenomenal work pushing this along, but my credibility was higher because I was not working for a partisan member of Congress or organization, and I could quite literally bring the solution directly in front of those I was trying to convince (hence, why Kaya Lyle is "The Most Powerful Lobbyist on the Hill": http://ijr.com/2016/06/612873-the-most-powerful-lobbyist-on-the-hill/)
Before you know it, we had a bill (https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4764 currently with over 130 BIPARTISAN cosponsors) but before the bill was introduced we had to prep those that were going to be key in the law passing. Once it was introduced there was a mad dash to get original cosponsors, media coverage, outside veterans organization to support, etc. All of this took lots of time, energy, and effort. Here are a few samples of the media:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/marine-mission-provide-veterans-suffering-ptsd-service-dogs/story?id=38404258
http://www.legion.org/legislative/234350/marine-veteran-has-his-‘dog-fight’
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2016/03/16/republicans-introduce-bill-to-get-puppies-for-veterans-we-have-a-chance-to-save-lives/
http://opportunitylives.com/how-one-veteran-and-his-dog-are-transforming-care-for-service-members/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paws-act-veterans-ptsd-service-dogs_us_56f1a5bbe4b02c402f6590c6
http://rare.us/story/a-heartwarming-new-approach-to-helping-veterans-who-suffer-from-ptsd/
After the House bill's introduction came an extremely busy schedule. I testified before a Congressional committee, the video of which can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy818tcs-kw
Then came the introduction of the Senate version of the bill (https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/3132)
which currently has 10 bipartisan cosponsors.
At this point, its worth noting that I was doing all of this work while in school full-time at Texas A&M University, working a part-time job in a bar kitchen, and being a resident advisor for student apartments. Over the previous summer, if I needed to take last-minute DC trips, sometimes to avoid missing more than 1 day of Summer classes (4 hours of school) I would fly out from Texas at 6am to get to DC by 9am, take meetings on the Hill all day, and leave from Reagan airport back to Texas, in time to make it to class the following day. Thus, I didn't have much spare time and was paying for everything out of my own pocket, amassing several thousand dollars in debt and giving me less time to devote to studies.
But my efforts have inspired other people to take action. Someone I didn't know saw my testimony before Congress and decided to hold an "Adventure Race" to raise money for a service-dog organization: https://www.classy.org/harrisonburg/events/fine-earth-adventure-race/walk-for-warriors-benefiting-k9s-for-warriors/e82532. The event organizer invited Kaya and I to attend the event, flew us out and thanked me for the inspiration, which raised over $300k that went directly towards helping get service dogs to veterans.
Hindsight is 20/20, and had I know the costs associated with this worthwhile endeavor, I would have set up a 501-(c)4 early to offset travel costs, the opportunity costs of not being able to earn a paycheck, food, lodging, etc. But I was just like many of you: wanting to make a positive difference in our society, but anticipating that one man and one man's-best-friend wasn't going to make this much of a splash.
The crux of the issue:
At this point, creating a non-profit is simply out of the question because of future employment opportunities working in Congress. I honestly never anticipated becoming a full-time lobbyist; I started doing this because with 20 veterans a day committing suicide it needed to be done and no one else was doing it.
But working in Congress, I plan on attacking this issue from the inside. For a long time I've been telling myself to drop the idea of asking for financial help because the efforts towards PAWS would create a lasting benefit helping to lower veteran suicides and saving potentially tens of thousands of lives. Why should I complain about several thousand dollars?
For a long time, I didn't want to solicit funding on crowdsource because it seemed wrong to ask for people for their disposable income without an official donation channel like a non-profit. My own personal effort towards PAWS has cost me out-of-pocket (and on to a credit card) over $17,000 since May of 2015.
At this point, it is worth reiterating that last-minute flights (to meet with influential Senators, Congressman, testifying before Congress, etc.) sometimes cost over $1,000. Combine that with the opportunity costs of not making money for the time while in DC, the dry-cleaning, the transportation to get to the airports, the lodging, food, drinks (because I'll be honest, more productive conversations happen with congressional staffers during happy hours than during regular business hours)...all of these things in one of the most expensive cities in the United States.
The credit card debt was unmanagable to the point that I took out student loans I did not need (because I had the Post-9/11 GI Bill) to pay it down. In late Spring of 2016, when a few people decided to sponsor flights, I started paying down debt vigorously, and have lowered my liabilities to roughly $10k. But the debt has created unanticipated burden. I had to get emergency funding from a non-profit to assist with housing over the summer semester due to a misunderstanding of payments that would have led me homeless. During the month of March when the bill was introduced, I spent (and I'm 100% not exaggerating) more money on Kaya's dog food than I did on my own food (shout out to working in a kitchen and being able to live off ramen and chicken).
Along this ride, many people have spoken with me and wanted to know how they could help; what they could get involved with. Usually I point them to donate to one of my favorite charities trying to accomplish this wonderful mission, or send them to pawsact.com to contact their representatives. But as I said, this debt has been weighing on me for a while. I've been vascillating on whether or not to crowdsource, because I did not know whether or not it was right to ask for money that will go directly to paying debt I have incurred, so I put the question to some friends for advice. As one friend put it:
"...this isn't about asking for handouts or 'selling your soul'. You are giving folks who can't travel with you or for you, and folks that haven't walked the same path in life as you have, an opportunity to be part of a movement and contribute to something very positive. This is a way for folks to get in the game instead of cheering from the sidelines."
and another...
"You have demonstrated in abundance that this isn't a get rich scheme, and those following you would know that helping you would be money well spent."
So if you can, I welcome a donation. I set up a seperate bank account specifically for these donations, and will be tracking them. There is no minimum (unless gofundme gives one), and I will provide evidence that any donations over my requested amount of $10k will go towards K9's for Warriors to help more veterans who had the same issue I did.
Semper Fi, God Bless you, and God Bless the United States of America.
While overseas, I had experiences that made it difficult to effectively transition back into civilian life. When I returned from Afghanistan, I began to experience a lot of difficulties not only with myself but with my family. Frequent nightmares, moodswings, and anxiety attacks - all of which were a result of my service - made it hard to resume normal life. I utilized the Department of Veteran's Affairs and was prescribed pills while simultaneously receiving counseling from what are called "Vet Centers". After roughly a year and a half down this path things had not gotten any better. I was going through a divorce, got discharged from active service, didn't have a job, and wasn't in school. To make matters worse: I was now addicted to my medications that had only exascerbated the nightmares; the same pills that had caused a few of my personal friends to commit suicide as a result of the same cycle of symptoms and abuse.
After nearly becoming a statistic, I decided I wanted to seek a different path. I had a friend who utilized a service dog that helped with symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress, but further research lead me to the fact that the VA does not provide them. I sought out non-profits like the Warrior Canine Connection, K9's for Warriors, Semper Fido, and Patriot Paws for help, only to find that wait times were a year and sometimes more. So I decided to go it alone. In conjunction with the advice of a for-profit trainer of dogs for PTS accredited by Assistance Dogs International, I used what money I had left after my divorce and purchased Kaya, my GSD service-dog. I had her obedience trained by one trainer, then subsequently trained by a specialist to assist with waking me up from nightmares and stopped anxiety attacks in their tracks. All told? $10k of my own money.
I was perfectly willing to accept the fact that I had to shoulder my own service-related recovery expenses myself, but as it happens, God had other plans. Watch the story about how I used my story to help other veterans here:
http://insider.foxnews.com/2016/03/17/paws-act-would-provide-wounded-warriors-service-dogs
When I started PAWS (an acronym for "Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers), quite frankly I held the same belief that most people do: that one person without funding or an organization behind him couldn't get Congress to do much of anything. But the idea was simple (and sellable) enough. I'm not advocating for every veteran with PTS to receive a service-dog, I simply want those veterans who have already tried the drugs and counseling and are still symptomatic to have another option when the first two don't work.
Most of that information was included in a website I created (www.pawsact.com), and I started some creative social media to increase awareness and lobby members of Congress from the new media angle (see: @kayalyle on Instagram and "Kaya Lyle" on FB). I was taking flights (oftentimes last-minute) to DC several times a month in order to lobby those that needed convincing. You see, my friends working for Congressman as staffers were doing phenomenal work pushing this along, but my credibility was higher because I was not working for a partisan member of Congress or organization, and I could quite literally bring the solution directly in front of those I was trying to convince (hence, why Kaya Lyle is "The Most Powerful Lobbyist on the Hill": http://ijr.com/2016/06/612873-the-most-powerful-lobbyist-on-the-hill/)
Before you know it, we had a bill (https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4764 currently with over 130 BIPARTISAN cosponsors) but before the bill was introduced we had to prep those that were going to be key in the law passing. Once it was introduced there was a mad dash to get original cosponsors, media coverage, outside veterans organization to support, etc. All of this took lots of time, energy, and effort. Here are a few samples of the media:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/marine-mission-provide-veterans-suffering-ptsd-service-dogs/story?id=38404258
http://www.legion.org/legislative/234350/marine-veteran-has-his-‘dog-fight’
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2016/03/16/republicans-introduce-bill-to-get-puppies-for-veterans-we-have-a-chance-to-save-lives/
http://opportunitylives.com/how-one-veteran-and-his-dog-are-transforming-care-for-service-members/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paws-act-veterans-ptsd-service-dogs_us_56f1a5bbe4b02c402f6590c6
http://rare.us/story/a-heartwarming-new-approach-to-helping-veterans-who-suffer-from-ptsd/
After the House bill's introduction came an extremely busy schedule. I testified before a Congressional committee, the video of which can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy818tcs-kw
Then came the introduction of the Senate version of the bill (https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/3132)
which currently has 10 bipartisan cosponsors.
At this point, its worth noting that I was doing all of this work while in school full-time at Texas A&M University, working a part-time job in a bar kitchen, and being a resident advisor for student apartments. Over the previous summer, if I needed to take last-minute DC trips, sometimes to avoid missing more than 1 day of Summer classes (4 hours of school) I would fly out from Texas at 6am to get to DC by 9am, take meetings on the Hill all day, and leave from Reagan airport back to Texas, in time to make it to class the following day. Thus, I didn't have much spare time and was paying for everything out of my own pocket, amassing several thousand dollars in debt and giving me less time to devote to studies.
But my efforts have inspired other people to take action. Someone I didn't know saw my testimony before Congress and decided to hold an "Adventure Race" to raise money for a service-dog organization: https://www.classy.org/harrisonburg/events/fine-earth-adventure-race/walk-for-warriors-benefiting-k9s-for-warriors/e82532. The event organizer invited Kaya and I to attend the event, flew us out and thanked me for the inspiration, which raised over $300k that went directly towards helping get service dogs to veterans.
Hindsight is 20/20, and had I know the costs associated with this worthwhile endeavor, I would have set up a 501-(c)4 early to offset travel costs, the opportunity costs of not being able to earn a paycheck, food, lodging, etc. But I was just like many of you: wanting to make a positive difference in our society, but anticipating that one man and one man's-best-friend wasn't going to make this much of a splash.
The crux of the issue:
At this point, creating a non-profit is simply out of the question because of future employment opportunities working in Congress. I honestly never anticipated becoming a full-time lobbyist; I started doing this because with 20 veterans a day committing suicide it needed to be done and no one else was doing it.
But working in Congress, I plan on attacking this issue from the inside. For a long time I've been telling myself to drop the idea of asking for financial help because the efforts towards PAWS would create a lasting benefit helping to lower veteran suicides and saving potentially tens of thousands of lives. Why should I complain about several thousand dollars?
For a long time, I didn't want to solicit funding on crowdsource because it seemed wrong to ask for people for their disposable income without an official donation channel like a non-profit. My own personal effort towards PAWS has cost me out-of-pocket (and on to a credit card) over $17,000 since May of 2015.
At this point, it is worth reiterating that last-minute flights (to meet with influential Senators, Congressman, testifying before Congress, etc.) sometimes cost over $1,000. Combine that with the opportunity costs of not making money for the time while in DC, the dry-cleaning, the transportation to get to the airports, the lodging, food, drinks (because I'll be honest, more productive conversations happen with congressional staffers during happy hours than during regular business hours)...all of these things in one of the most expensive cities in the United States.
The credit card debt was unmanagable to the point that I took out student loans I did not need (because I had the Post-9/11 GI Bill) to pay it down. In late Spring of 2016, when a few people decided to sponsor flights, I started paying down debt vigorously, and have lowered my liabilities to roughly $10k. But the debt has created unanticipated burden. I had to get emergency funding from a non-profit to assist with housing over the summer semester due to a misunderstanding of payments that would have led me homeless. During the month of March when the bill was introduced, I spent (and I'm 100% not exaggerating) more money on Kaya's dog food than I did on my own food (shout out to working in a kitchen and being able to live off ramen and chicken).
Along this ride, many people have spoken with me and wanted to know how they could help; what they could get involved with. Usually I point them to donate to one of my favorite charities trying to accomplish this wonderful mission, or send them to pawsact.com to contact their representatives. But as I said, this debt has been weighing on me for a while. I've been vascillating on whether or not to crowdsource, because I did not know whether or not it was right to ask for money that will go directly to paying debt I have incurred, so I put the question to some friends for advice. As one friend put it:
"...this isn't about asking for handouts or 'selling your soul'. You are giving folks who can't travel with you or for you, and folks that haven't walked the same path in life as you have, an opportunity to be part of a movement and contribute to something very positive. This is a way for folks to get in the game instead of cheering from the sidelines."
and another...
"You have demonstrated in abundance that this isn't a get rich scheme, and those following you would know that helping you would be money well spent."
So if you can, I welcome a donation. I set up a seperate bank account specifically for these donations, and will be tracking them. There is no minimum (unless gofundme gives one), and I will provide evidence that any donations over my requested amount of $10k will go towards K9's for Warriors to help more veterans who had the same issue I did.
Semper Fi, God Bless you, and God Bless the United States of America.
Organizer
Cole Thomas Lyle
Organizer
Euless, TX
