{"id":272,"date":"2017-09-26T15:57:30","date_gmt":"2017-09-26T15:57:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/vetlife\/appreciation\/?p=272"},"modified":"2017-09-27T01:37:13","modified_gmt":"2017-09-27T01:37:13","slug":"seeds-of-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/vetlife\/appreciation\/seeds-of-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeds of Hope"},"content":{"rendered":"
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IN THE NAME OF HOLISTIC MENTAL HEALTH, CHRISTOPHER BROWN, \u201916, CREATED GROWING VETERANS<\/a>, AN ORGANIZATION THAT RECONNECTS VETERANS\u00a0TO EACH OTHER \u2014 AND TO LIFE.<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n
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Christopher Brown squats among knee-high rows of green garlic. He grasps a stalk at its base and tugs it from the ground with a satisfying crunch. After popping several plants from the soil, he peels back their papery protective layers, revealing bulbs that are a brilliant, glossy white.<\/p>\n

Six months ago, much of this Skagit Valley farmland was a mucky soup of tangled grass, mud and standing water under stormy skies. Today, it\u2019s a pleasant 70 degrees. Rows of produce, from garlic and sugar snap peas to kale and broccoli, spring from the valley\u2019s soft loam.<\/p>\n

A three-time Marine combat veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, Brown struggled to adjust when he returned to the U.S. So, too, did many of the men and women who are now harvesting produce alongside him \u2014\u00a0military veterans from all branches, of all ages.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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A THREE-TIME MARINE COMBAT VETERAN<\/span> WHO SERVED IN BOTH IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN, CHRISTOPHER BROWN STRUGGLED TO ADJUST WHEN HE RETURNED TO THE U.S. <\/span>WATCH HIS STORY <\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Welcome to Growing Veterans, the thriving nonprofit that has transformed the life of Brown, its president and co-founder, and the lives of many of its workers and volunteers.<\/p>\n

Together, they use sustainable practices to plant, grow and harvest a rich variety of produce for sale at farmers markets and donation to food banks. It is satisfying work, but there\u2019s a deeper mission at stake: helping veterans reconnect \u2014 to each other, and to the communities they serve. And, in the process, tackling the pervasive isolation that underlies many of the issues they face.<\/p>\n

In the morning, they park their cars in the gravel driveway of a former dairy farm. They greet each other with hugs. As they work, they share stories \u2014 funny stories, sad stories, terrifying stories \u2014\u00a0from their time in the service. They talk politics. Medications. Family. Civilian life.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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