FORWARD with Derek Herrera
By Derek Herrera
FORWARD with Derek Herrera Oct 15, 2021
“Life Will Never Be The Same--But It Will Be Awesome”...with Roy Tuscany
In this week’s, I was lucky enough to sit down with Roy Tuscany, founder of the non-profit organization High Fives Foundation.
Roy started High Fives after seeing from his own personal spinal cord injury experience, how devastating and challenging it was for him to move forward and find meaning and purpose in life after injury. We talk about the great lessons he learned through the network of mentors and advisors who helped guide him in his recovery to live his life to it’s fullest potential and how this inspired him to want to replicate and scale that peer mentorship ethos to be there for anyone else in the US suffering from a spinal cord injury so they are not alone and dealing with this very challenging circumstance by themselves.
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“I Felt Like An Athlete Again...” With Alana Nichols
On this week’s episode, I was honored to sit down with Alana Nichols, Paraplegic, mother, and one of the most decorated Paralympic athletes of all time, becoming the first person to ever medal in both a winter and summer Olympic Games.
We talk about the amazing lessons she learned after sustaining a life changing injury while she was in high school and how, through those lessons, she was able to find passion and purpose through her love of sport again, in an adaptive and modified way.
"Best lessons I had in humility..." With Jake Harriman
In this week’s episode I had the pleasure of talking to Jake, former U.S. marine and current non-profit leader, entrepreneur, and a truly inspirational human being who is working tirelessly to create change for all of us. We talk about Jake's time as a marine and how what he witnessed on the battfield propelled him to set out on a mission to eradicate extreme poverty around the world. This led him to found his non-profit organization, Nuru International where he spent almost a decade developing the situation and delivering results in places like Kenya, Ethiopia, and other places in Africa. We also discuss Jake's new mission with his organization, More Perfect Union, where he is trying to help stop the divide between people in the U.S. by bringing people together, while leveraging the network of veterans and special operators he knows, to rally behind the cause to save America and dismantle the current political landscape.
Learn More About Jake:
Instagram: @jakeharriman
More Perfect Union Website: www.mpu.us
Instagram: @moreperfectunion.us Nuru International
Website: https://nuruinternational.org/
Instagram: @nuruinternational
"I Was Never Going to Quit ..." With Jeff Gum
Hello and welcome to another episode of Forward With Derek Herrera. Today we talk with Jeff Gum, Jeff is incredible man, he is a former Navy SEAL and now entrepreneur in the swimwear industry. We discuss his journey and trials and tribulations are going through SEALS training and failing and having to repeat hell week multiple times before receiving the title of Navy SEAL. We talked about his time serving overseas and injuries he sustained that prevented him from continuing to serve as a Navy SEAL and how he found meaning and purpose moving forward as an entrepreneur.
You can find out more about Jeff and his ventures below:
www.sungalife.com
www.forceblueteam.org
www.honor.org
http://www.adaptivetrainingfoundation.org
Instagram: @jeffgum, @sunga.life, @forceblueteam
"The best network there is in medical technology ..." With Paul Grand
Welcome to another episode of forward. Paul Grand is former venture capitalist, and then started a non profit called MedTech Innovation which is the largest incubator and accelerator for any early stage medical technology and device company in the world. Paul is incredibly energetic, positive and has a phenomenal attitude which has allowed him to be successful as an entrepreneur, investor, and CEO of Non Profit.
“We All Contain Multitudes...” With Elliot Ackerman
Welcome to Forward with Derek Herrera. Today we talk with Elliot Ackerman. Elliot is a former marine officer and served as a Marine raider before transitioning to the CIA. He is an award winning author of many works including his new book 2034:A Novel of the Next World War. We talk about his days in the Marine Corp and the founding days of the Marine Special Operations command, what it was like to transition to the CIA, and when he decided to leave that position to become an author.
"I've never made a decision based on money..." With David Alberga
Hello and welcome to another episode of Forward with Derek Herrera. Today we are joined by Dave Alberga. Dave is a very successful entrepreneur, and military veteran. David was a product manager for Procter and Gamble, selling maxi pads out of the trunk of his car and grew to be the leader of the startup active.com growing revenue from $75,000 to half a billion dollars in annual revenue. We discuss the stress of running a company like active.com took on him, what drives him and inspires action of helping others, and how he now gives back as an advisor, investor and board member for a variety of non profits and startups in the fitness space like Peloton, The Honor Foundation and more.
"My Focus is on the Patient..." with General Peter Chiarelli
Welcome to another episode of Forward with Derek Herrera. This week I was honored to speak to General Peter Chiarelli, former Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army (the second highest ranking officer in the service), who served for over 40 years. As Vice Chief,General Chiarelli was inspired by a chart showcasing how Traumatic Brain Injury and Concussions were the leading causes of injury amongst servicemen, he was determined to change the way these injuries were diagnosed and treated, a cause he continued to pursue post-army. In this episode, we discuss General Chiarelli's time in the Army, his inspiration to enlist, and his position on brain health practices within and outside of the army, including the struggles of making change within the health care system. We also talk heavily about his ventures after leaving the service, including his involvement in the non-profit brain health organization One Mind and his current endeavor with NightWare, a prescription digital therapeutic system for the reduction of sleep disturbance related to Nightmare Disorders or nightmares from post-traumatic stress disorder. General Chirarelli's approach has always been servicemen, veterans, and patients first.
www.nightware.com
www.onemind.org
"If not me, then who?..." With Martha Raddatz
Welcome to Forward with Derek Herrera and Martha Raddatz. Martha is an extraordinary person. She is an award winning journalist who has had a phenomenal career. Martha has covered politics, government, military operations across the globe. We discussed her perspective of combat operations and military operations and gain insight on what service members and leadership are doing and corresponding with government officials to uncover knowledge and share the stories of our service members. Martha was the moderator of the 2016 presidential debate between candidates Trump and Clinton.
“Protect the brain, fuel the brain, repair the brain…” With Andrew Marr
Andrew Marr is a former Green Beret and a non profit leader who serves as the founder rand CEO of the Warrior Angels Foundation. Andrew sustained trauma and injury to his brain that took him down to a vicious cycle of dangerous medications and victimhood until he took control of his recovery and work to fundamentally change the way brain injury and concussions are treated for himself and others. Andrew has worked collaboratively with world leading researchers to develop new treatments and therapeutic modalities for anyone suffering from brain injury. He is the author of “Tales From the Blast Factory” and also a documentary with Joe Rogan called “Quiet Explosions” both available on Amazon.
https://warriorangelsfoundation.org
https://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_marr_defined_by_action/up-next
http://quietexplosions.com/
https://www.amazon.com/Tales-Blast-Factory-Injured-Special/dp/1683504941/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XM4XXSCV1TSP&dchild=1&keywords=tales+from+the+blast+factory&qid=1633044171&sprefix=tales+from+the+blast+fa%2Caps%2C179&sr=8-1
"I felt like a prisoner in my own body..." With Andrew Marr
Andrew Marr is a former Green Beret and a non profit leader who serves as the founder rand CEO of the Warrior Angels Foundation. Andrew sustained trauma and injury to his brain that took him down to a vicious cycle of dangerous medications and victimhood until he took control of his recovery and work to fundamentally change the way brain injury and concussions are treated for himself and others. Andrew has worked collaboratively with world leading researchers to develop new treatments and therapeutic modalities for anyone suffering from brain injury. He is the author of “Tales From the Blast Factory” and also a documentary with Joe Rogan called “Quiet Explosions” both available on Amazon.
https://warriorangelsfoundation.org
https://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_marr_defined_by_action/up-next
http://quietexplosions.com/
https://www.amazon.com/Tales-Blast-Factory-Injured-Special/dp/1683504941/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XM4XXSCV1TSP&dchild=1&keywords=tales+from+the+blast+factory&qid=1633044171&sprefix=tales+from+the+blast+fa%2Caps%2C179&sr=8-1
"I Always Knew Education Was The Way Forward..." With Victoria Hathaway
In this weeks episode, I spoke with Victoria Hathaway, young executive and Director of Operations at MedTechVets, a non-profit that assists and prepares transitioning service members and military veterans for meaningful employment in medical device and life science companies.We unfold the challenges Victoria faced in her childhood and how that adversity inspired her career-path to make meaningful change, first as a Diversity and Inclusion Recruiter for top-tier universities, to now developing programs and methods to engage Veterans in her current position at MedTechVets.
http://medtechvets.org
“I hear hell open up behind me...” With Nick Jones
In Part Two, the continuation of this series with Nick Jones retired Marine Raider, Navy Cross Recipient, and Founder & President of Talon's Reach Foundation, we discuss in depth the battle field in Iraq on the mission where Nick lost two of his fellow brothers and sustained siginificant injuries when "hell opened up behind him." We learn about Nick's long journey to recovery after he was shot in the leg, his inspiration for starting his non-profit organization, Talon's Reach Foundation, how compartmentalizing traumatic events can be good or bad depending on the circumstances and how you chose to frame the events that have happened, and the best practices to deal with grief and guilt to help you continue to move forward to your next mission or calling in life.
Learn More About Talon's Reach Here: www.talonsreachfoundation.org
Follow Nick on Instagram: @itisnickjones
" I Was Destined to Go to Battle..." With Nick Jones
Part One: In this two part series, we sat down with Nick Jones, retired Marine Raider, Navy Cross Recipient, and Founder & President of Talon's Reach Foundation, a non-profit supporting the special operations community by providing tools and resources for those suffering from injuries, losses of brothers in arms, or from a lack of purpose after leaving the service. Nick is a true American Hero. In Part One, we discuss his decision to graduate high school early to enlist in the Marines, his journey through training and his multiple deployments, and what it was like being around other service members and seeing them struggle with adversity and trauma after two tragic accidents occurred during training.
Learn More About Talon's Reach Here: www.talonsreachfoundation.org
Follow Nick on Instagram: @itisnickjones.
"Ideas are free..." With David Ferrera
Welcome to another episode of FORWARD. This week we sat down with David Ferrera, medical device engineer and entrepreneur, where we discussed his inspiration for getting into medtech, advice on investing, teams, and how to break into the industry, and that failure is the stepping stone to resilience. We also discussed his book, "Innovation in Translation" published by Forbes, where we gain a deeper understanding of how Dave was able to keep pushing forward after he was ousted from his own company while "Chasing Nirvana".
https://www.amazon.com/Innovation-Translation-Ideas-Really-Happen/dp/1946633844
Any questions and comments about the podcast please email forward@derekherrera.com
"I Was Ecstatic, I Was Alive..." with Bob Woodruff
Today’s guest is Bob Woodruff. Bob served as an award winning journalist and combat correspondent until he suffered a sever injury in Iraq where he survived a massive explosion. He moved forward by starting the Bob Woodruff Foundation where him and his wife Lee have raised millions of dollars to support Veterans and bring awareness to Veteran Issues. Additionally he has filmed a variety of journalistic episodes and “Rogue Trip” available on Disney +.
We talk about quality verse quantity, how he found joy and purpose in his mission after injury’s and how he was able to change his perspective to adapt to the new reality.
Any questions and comments about the podcast please email forward@derekherrera.com
FORWARD with Derek Herrera
I've had the most incredible people come into my life over the past 15 years and have learned so much from them. I will be interviewing Leaders that have demonstrated success in the Business, Military, and Non-Profit sectors that are all united by a common theme; RESILIENCE.
My goal is to share these amazing lessons learned to educate and inspire. I'm truly looking FORWARD to sharing this journey with you!!!
Please share and rate 5 stars so we can make a HUGE impact.
https://open.spotify.com/show/0FHI2DCplYrygRHWqJ62cC
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FORWARD With Derek Herrera Trailer
Welcome to Forward.
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