Thriving on Mission

Miranda Briggs founded the Fight the War Within Foundation in 2020, two years after the loss of her husband, SPC Garrett Briggs, USA (Ret.), to the 22 a Day veteran suicide epidemic. The loss occurred just two short weeks after the birth of their daughter, Essex. Miranda, though devastated by the loss of her love, overcame the tragedy and turned her grief into a call to action, to save others from the same fate as Garrett.  

With the support of her friends and family, Miranda and Essex established the Fight the War Within Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to providing resources to those suffering from Post Traumatic Stress as a result of military or first responder service, or some other tragic event, so that we can continue in the fight against suicide. The Foundation's goal is to provide support for people from all walks of life, who are struggling and in need of help.  

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Also available on Apple Podcasts, Anchor.fm, Castbox, Spotify and Google Podcasts. Just search for Thriving on Mission.  

This week I interview an incredible veteran Dan Foulds. While Dan began his career in the Air Force in various capacities from loading bombs onto B-52 aircraft, to managing the Officer's Club at MacDill AFB, he made the transition to becoming a US Army Flight Warrant Officer. After his first assignment he was asked to join a newly forming unit at Hunter Army Airfield, in Savannah, Georgia, the 3rd Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment Airborne in 1989.  

Dan remained with the 160th SOAR until his retirement in 1998, serving as a Flight Lead and Instructor Pilot in the MH-47D aircraft. Dan deployed in January 1991 to Saudi Arabia and flew combat missions during Desert Storm into Iraq. In April 1996, he deployed with 3/160th SOAR to assist in the evacuation of noncombatants from the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia, Liberia. The operation lasted just 10 days, during which the Night Stalkers assisted in evacuating more than 2,000 noncombatants with no losses to the regiment.  

After retiring from the Army, Dan flew EMS helicopters as a line pilot, training captain, aviation base manager, and travelling relief pilot for 17 years. These days you can find Dan captaining boats in the Savannah area and teaching others to do the same.  

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Also available on Apple Podcasts, Anchor.fm, Castbox, Spotify and Google Podcasts. Just search for Thriving on Mission.  

Additional Links from the show:

After a couple months from the completion of Season 1, here is the roll out for Season 2. A little reflection from the first half of the year and then some things we can look forward to in the next 11 episodes.  

This episode is in memory of Turbine 33, an MH-47D helicopter & crew from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR). Turbine 33 was shot down on June 28th, 2005 in Northeast Afghanistan while transporting an eight-man Navy SEAL Quick Reaction Force (QRF) to aid four of their brothers in the Hindu Kush mountains. Turbine 33 was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), killing all 16 men on board - 8 Night Stalkers & 8 Navy SEALs.  

During this episode, I will share with you some of my experiences during this event and a piece of history that provided so many of us strength in the days ahead. Check out the associated blog article for this episode to see the entire letter and transcription of it.  

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This week I talk with two incredible ladies. One is my wife, Stacie Rogie, and the other is Lisa Denton, the wife of Tim who has been on this show before. Both, as spouses of retired Night Stalkers, discuss some of the struggles they have experienced and still experience because of their husbands’ military service.

Last November, at the Savannah Night Stalkers - 30th Anniversary Celebration, I was able to reconnect with a lot of my brothers-in-arms through the events of that week.  From fellow pilots & crew dogs to past commanders & staff officers, our docs & maintainers, both military & civilian it was a huge homecoming event for so many of us. One of the guys I was able to reconnect with was Neville Andre Anson, aka Dre.

As you will find out as you listen to our talk, Dre was a crew dog in the unit, and we flew many missions together. After we saw each other at the 30th Anniversary Celebration we exchanged contact info and agreed to catch up after the New Year. Once we did and I was able to catch up with Dre I was in shock. I was in shock because I never knew his full story, the tragedies that were part of it, and that he was a close as someone can be to taking his own life as one can. Even during this recording, I had trouble holding it together when Dre talks about one of the darkest days of his life.

This week I talk a little bit about some issues I have with getting a restful night of sleep, feedback from previous podcasts, and some small talk about self-isolation and social distancing. I also share five self-care practices that I think would be useful to others. To find out what they are you will have to listen to the episode.  

Remember that ultimately I'm doing these recordings to help others and to help myself. I want to stay true to this theme, this mission and this calling that I firmly believe I should be doing. If you know someone who might benefit from this episode or another one of the episodes please share it with them. I know lives are being encouraged and changed for the better and many more could also benefit from some of these messages.  

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As we continue with various levels of social isolation around the world I want to take this week's episode to highlight someone who, despite many reasons to just be surviving, was able to figure out how to thrive on mission. Amanda Brady is an occupational therapist who has been furloughed for almost two months here in Savannah, Georgia. My wife and I met Amanda almost three years ago when she was invited to our small-group bible study by a mutual friend. Since then we have learned how much Amanda loves Jesus, loves people and loves putting those two things together to bring hope to others.

So after she was furloughed in March, Amanda came up with an idea to help her friends who are still working in the healthcare field. Many of her friends would tell her that their ears were becoming raw & irritated from wearing a mask all day long. Looking for a solution on the internet she saw a few ideas for straps/bands to alleviate this problem. As an avid crocheter, Amanda came up with a pattern to make something like that herself for her friends.

Join us this week as we hear how she remained focus and why she chose to make hundreds, upon hundreds of Amanda Bands, recruit an army of other crocheters, and share her creation with anyone who wants it, all for free!

In 2005 I had the opportunity to work for Admiral McRaven for a few months. At one point, after I was involved in a catastrophic aircraft accident, he took some time to sit down with my crew and me and share some of his story with us. I was impressed beyond measure at his genuineness and care for those under his command, as he related a couple of near-death experiences he had as a Navy SEAL, and the steps he had to take to get back out there.

I was able to make it to the recording studio last week and talked about how to be resilient during a global pandemic. We avoid conspiracy theories and try and talk about some healthy ways to be mentally resilient while we are staying home. My default unhealthy coping technique for any type of stress is to isolate and I know if I don't want to lose the ground I've gained in the past year I need to take action.

Welcome to the fifth episode of Thriving on Mission. I’m Matt Rogie, the show’s host and this week’s episode is an interview I conducted on February 13th, Seven and one-half weeks ago.

Today on April 6th as I prep this episode for publishing, I know most of my listeners are under some type of stay-at-home mandate. I’m praying for your health, your jobs & your families in these difficult times.

We recorded this episode on February 6th and the coronavirus was still just a blip in the United States. As I was listening to the final edit about halfway through the episode (around the 21-minute mark) I realized how apropos this message is in light of the current situation we all find ourselves amidst this global pandemic. 

In this week's episode, I unpack my experience on two outdoor backpacking trips I went on last year with the Tadpole Foundation. To help organize my thoughts I used my sister-in-law's letter she wrote to me, and the rest of the group, for one of these trips. 

Sit back, grab a cup of coffee and take a few minutes to listen to this week as I talk about why some of these adventure/outdoor experiences can be therapeutic, realizing how much excess baggage I have been carrying in my life, and how jumping into the ice-cold Yellowstone River really caused me to examine my identity and true self.

As I wrap up this week's episode I recall a time back in Afghanistan when some soldiers set up a "Starbucks" on the airfield at Bagram Airbase. In the episode, I said this was 2002, but after reflecting more I think the date was sometime in 2004.

Links from this week's episode:  

This episode was recorded on January 30th and the world we live in just 2 months later is radically different. So, don't be surprised when you hear references to things like the Super Bowl, or Kobe Bryant's tragic death, and no mention of a global pandemic. I'll be sharing some of my story of how I went from being a Special Operations Aviator to becoming a missionary. We will also discuss a truly heroic event that occurred last summer in Afghanistan about two Army Ranger Medics and what they did to save lives one night. Finally, I share some thoughts on a short film I got to watch at a film festival here in Savannah. 

Links from this week's episode:

This week I'll be discussing with my special guest, Tim Denton, our week-long experience at a Mighty Oaks Legacy Program the previous week. Tim is a combat veteran as well of 26 years, serving 18 of those years in the 160th SOAR(A) as an MH-47 pilot & flight lead. Tim and I flew many missions together and continue to live close by each other in the Savannah area.

Join me as I talk through reasons I decided to start this podcast.   

Why did I name this podcast Thriving on Mission?   

What is thriving versus surviving to me?  

What is your mission? Today, this week and your life?