Operation RESILIENCY, part of The Independence Fund, reunites post-9/11 military units who survived traumatic experiences together during their deployment and have been affected by Veteran suicide once home. Relying on the trust and brotherhood forged in combat, military units gather to address their next, and most important mission on the home front: Preventing Veteran suicide. Together, Veterans engage in peer-to-peer support, physical activity, and social connectedness to build resiliency skills. Since 2019, The Independence Fund has been proud to include the unit’s combat interpreter Allies in reunions, as they served alongside our Veterans shoulder to-shoulder in combat and now fight alongside our Veterans on the home front. OpRES attendees participate in a four-day retreat and leave with tools and resources to use when the load gets too heavy.

Danica Thomas , one of this year's guest speakers, lost her husband to suicide.  He was in 82nd Airborne BRAVO Company, one of the hardest hit units in Afghanistan.  BRAVO Company was the first unit to be reunited under Operation Resiliency.  Our goal is to raise $100,000 to pay for the second BRAVO Company reunion that is scheduled for this June.  Surviving members of BRAVO Company are going to attend our event and talk about their experience, what the first reunion meant to them, and what they look forward to in the second reunion.