Ely, Minn. – Stories inspire, heal and change lives. And when a storyteller finds the right listeners, the storyteller benefits, too.
Such was the case for a group of U.S. military veterans who traveled into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for four days in mid-June. The expedition was part of a program at Voyageur Outward Bound School outside of Ely focused on veterans and personal empowerment in life after the service. Since 2008, more than 5,000 veterans have participated in Outward Bound programs designed for them.
Led by instructors Kevin Morris and Sam Kujawa, the group camped at a different wilderness lake each day. Every morning, the instructors posed a general question for the veterans to think about. Later on, they would discuss it. None were required to talk.
The veterans were strangers to each other when the journey started, but they're not strangers anymore. They also are bound by their shared experience of military life, something some civilians don't fully understand.
Domenic Pierri, 32, of Des Plaines, Ill., served in Iraq and Germany. He is currently a social worker. He said the canoe expedition was a challenge outside his comfort zone but ultimately therapeutic. He said he has come to realize that a lot of military personnel have been conditioned to fear expressing their feelings.
"That's part of the reason why a lot of vets come out with psychological issues," he said.
Formerly stationed in Okinawa, Japan, Matt Brown, 33, said letting go of military life can be hard, and he is trying to fill the void with a different, honorable path. But finding it isn't always easy, he said. He appreciated spending time in the wilderness and talking with comrades about how they handled problems similar to his.
"[Counseling] really doesn't help because I don't think you get the same effect just going into a room and talking to somebody that doesn't really relate to you or is really not into the same thing you are," said Brown, of Yadkinville, N.C.