So incredibly proud of this man and BraveHearts

Words cannot express how proud I am of the young man featured in this VFW Magazine article.

I met him last spring while I was covering a story for the local paper. It was just an ordinary article – or so I thought.

I admit I was a little terrified going into this interview – I didn’t know anything about the Marines OR horses; he loved them both. I wasn’t sure what to expect – I really hadn’t met many veterans during my life. What I did know was that while he was fighting for my freedom, I was living a pretty cozy life, and I felt pretty small interviewing a man who had given everything to protect our country.

That day, I not only met him, but also about a dozen veterans who were riding under his direction that day. I was at a loss for words. I looked through the lens of my Nikon and photographed emotions I didn’t even know could be captured in print.

I am so thankful for that opportunity. In looking at those photographs, I can truly appreciate the bond between a horse and a human. And in these men, who fought for our nation, who gave so much more than their lives, I saw a peace. I witnessed that peace in their eyes, in their faces and in their postures.

Nick was willing to share his story – with Harvard, with me and, now, with veterans across the world. And I am so happy he did. He hopes to reach as many men and women as possible whose lives are affected by PTSD.

This is my first article with VFW Magazine and I am so proud to have done this with the inspirational and incomparable “Mr. Nick” as my children call him, the encouraging and remarkable Mr. Stratton who shared so much of his story with me – much more than I could ever put in this article, the unrivaled Meggan Hill-McQueeney who willingly lent her expertise and wisdom to this and the men and women who touched my heart and whose faces will forever be engrained in my memory – they are the heroes who pushed me to so fiercely pursue this.