“I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up, after I got out of the Marine Corps,” reflects Frank Kancir, a retired USMC Sergeant. “I just didn’t have that same, I don’t know… drive, buy-in, or whatever it was as I did when I was a Marine. So when I read the description of the [Built for More] program, I was all in.”
As a Built for More participant, Frank Kancir discovered an ability to change. To exist again with purpose. Something he was trying to figure out on his own for years, but until he found Warriors & Quiet Waters’ Built for More program, it wasn’t something he was able to do on his own. “If it wasn’t for Warriors & Quiet Waters, and the many things that this place has done for me, I would would most likely be a statistic at this point in my life.”
The United States military invests thousands of hours into building the Warrior identity with precision, through structure, mission, and unbreakable camaraderie. For those who serve, purpose and mission aren’t optional. They are embedded in every hour of every day.
And then, one day, it’s gone.
Veterans return home to a civilian world that feels unfamiliar, unsteady, and unsupportive. Their identity is stripped away, and this is where the crisis begins.
The catastrophic problem that we as a nation face is this: veterans are struggling with loss of purpose, community, and mission. This loss leads veterans to feel a sense of hopelessness, to suffer from mental health and substance use disorders, and to have an overall lack of care for their future. These struggles are felt in countless families and communities, every single day. An immense ripple effect that should shake our nation to the core. And drive us to demand better for our veterans.
At Warriors & Quiet Waters (WQW), that’s exactly what we are delivering: better programming, proven outcomes, and transformed lives for post-9/11 combat veterans, their loved ones, their communities, and our nation as a whole.
We do it by intentionally addressing risk factors that prevent veterans from thriving and building a meaningful future: Pain, sleep problems, physical decline, isolation and relationship problems, and hopelessness. Each phase of our Built for More (BFM) program addresses each risk factor by guiding Warriors to build a thriving life on these six pillars: Security, Connection, Values, Identity, Potential, and Purpose.
All rooted in a foundation of Holistic Wellness that addresses mind, body, and spiritual wellbeing.
This work requires time, the right conditions, and incredible support. So WQW developed Built for More to be different from other veteran programs. Built for More is not a weeklong vacation in Montana. It is a nine-month, rigorous program that requires real commitment from the veteran participants in order to achieve the outcomes it was designed and proven to deliver.
BFM begins and ends with peak experiences in nature, because time in nature creates the conditions necessary for Warrior participants to successfully grapple with the challenges and opportunities they face post-service. Each BFM track provides Warriors with a new outdoor skill – fly fishing, archery, hunting, or photography – so they have an outdoor pursuit to bring home. An activity where they can recreate that sense of peace and the quiet mind necessary to the healing work of the BFM program.
Finally, BFM gives Warriors a new community through an 8-person cohort that goes through the entire journey together. Through volunteers and guides who accompany their two in-person nature experiences. And through our committed staff who, at every level and in every department, are dedicated to delivering a program that changes, and saves, lives.
A thriving, purpose-driven life is something we are blessed to pursue in America. It is something we at WQW believe every veteran deserves, and we are constantly striving to do more, for more veterans. Our strategic vision is to double our program capacity by 2030. With a waitlist of over 1,500 veterans who are looking for the outcomes that BFM delivers, the need is now.
I invite you to learn more about us, and if you’re so inspired, to join our legacy of hope and healing by making an investment in WQW, in BFM, in thriving veterans. Because thriving veterans positively impact every community they touch and inspire future generations to serve. An optimistic and compelling ripple effect that our nation needs.
Thriving veterans positively impact every community they touch and inspire future generations to serve.