Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kurt Webber. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kurt, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

I’m not sure what category this falls under but maybe “defining moment” works for my experience as a volunteer. I suspect that Gregg Martin recommended me to you because of my work with Camp Resilience. As one of the founders, I am very proud that we have run 117 Camp Resilience retreats since 2014 that have served over 1100 participants.

I also want to make an observation about charitable work and volunteerism in general. After over 40 years of volunteering in many activities, I am convinced that giving back is good for you! My volunteer activities give more meaning and purpose to my life, and they make me feel good! – which benefits my emotional and mental well-being. This is why at Camp Resilience we also encourage the participants of our retreats to volunteer in their communities and give back as part of their healing process. This is a very meaningful and powerful way to not only help others but to also help yourself. This is a message we all should be spreading!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I graduated from West Point in 1979 and was commissioned as an Infantry officer. I am Airborne, Ranger and Special Forces (better known as the Green Berets) qualified and served in various Infantry, Armored and Special Forces units in over 22 years of active duty. This also included two 3-year tours teaching at Electrical & Computer Engineering at West Point. I retired in August of 2001 and started teaching Computer Technologies at Lakes Region Community College in Laconia, NH. After the 9/11 attacks, I volunteered to return to active duty and ended up being deployed to Iraq in 2005 as an advisor for the Iraqi Army.

In 2014, I helped found Camp Resilience to help military, veterans, and first responders cope with what can sometimes be the devastating consequences of their service – issues like PTSD, Moral Injury, depression and/or physical injuries. Also, since these psychological, emotional and physical issues not only affect the veterans and first responders but can also seriously affect their families and loved ones, we are proud to offer retreats to help them also. Since these issues are a result of their service to us, their fellow citizens, our team at Camp Resilience honors this by helping them bounce back and improve their lives and I am proud to be part of that effort!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Since I helped start a program named Camp Resilience, this is a topic I know a lot about. Our retreats introduce many different tools that help the participants improve their resiliency so that they can better cope with the issues arising from their service in the military or as first responders. After being involved in over 100 retreats in the past 10 years, I have learned that the most important ways to improve your resiliency include better nutrition, exercise, getting outside and joining a community of people with similar experiences/challenges who you can support and get support from.

If you could go back, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?

As I mentioned earlier, my volunteer activities have not only helped others but have also helped me. I think I am a better person due to this and I wish I had started volunteering earlier in my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://camp-resilience.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/campresilience/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CampResilience/
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/abzrX3msXcU