Invictus Foundation

Dedicated to healing the invisible wounds of war

About

Message from the Founder and Trustee

“War. The hell where youth and laughter go.” – Siegfried Sasson

The Invictus Foundation’s mission is to provide a full range of behavioral health programs. These services will be designed specifically for the treatment of military related PTSD, TBI and other manifestations of psychological trauma.

There is no denying the emotional and physical toll that PTSD and TBI take on Americans who have experienced combat, most recently, those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many who have survived shocking violence have made their way back to their families and friends, but part of them are forever stuck on a road in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their experience is interwoven with the thousands of other men and women from wars past who have experienced military related psychological trauma as a result of their honorable service to our nation.

To these men and women and their families, we dedicate the Welcome Home Networks and the Invictus Foundation Centers for Traumatic Brain Injury & Psychological Health. We resolve to help soldiers heal from the invisible wounds of war and to restore their belief that “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.”

Sincerely,
Peter J. Whalen
Founder & Trustee
Invictus Foundation

Peter J Whalen

Mission

The Invictus Foundation is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to provide a full continuum of behavioral health services, as well as drug and alcohol treatment, for military related PTSD, TBI and other manifestations of psychological trauma.

Care options will be provided through state-of-the art behavioral health centers and will include both inpatient and outpatient programs. No soldier, nor members of their family, will ever be refused care based on their inability to pay.

Guiding Principles

We are a not-for-profit organization driven by the passions of individuals who believe that serving our nation’s warriors is a noble and worthy endeavor.

We will seek excellence in evaluation, treatment, and ongoing outreach services.

We are the stewards of a warrior’s emotional well-being while they are under our care. We accept the responsibility of the warrior’s trust and are accountable for our actions.

We must be humble and mindful in our actions and words. We seek and heed the counsel of outside voices.

We treat our philanthropists as valued partners.

We treat the ultimate beneficiaries of our work, our nation’s warriors, with respect.

We are dedicated to the efficient and effective use of resources. We accept the responsibility of the public’s trust and are accountable for our actions.

We believe in ethical and scholarly questioning to advance medicine’s knowledge base concerning military related PTSD, TBI and other manifestations of psychological trauma.

We are committed to the principles of truth and honesty, and will be equitable, ethical and professional.

Board of Trustees

Bryan Hoddle

Coach Bryan Hoddle has worked extensively with injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center Hospital in Washington, DC as well as Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham, Alabama, helping amputees, traumatic brain injuries, blind and wheelchair soldiers. Read More

Bryan Hoddle

Coach Bryan Hoddle has worked extensively with injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center Hospital in Washington, DC as well as Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham, Alabama, helping amputees, traumatic brain injuries, blind and wheelchair soldiers. He was selected as the 2001-2002 Veterans of Foreign War Teacher of the Year for the State of Washington and is the recipient of its 2001-2002 Veterans of Foreign War National Citizenship Education Teacher Award.

In August of 2002, he was named Program Director for the USA Paralympics Track and Field Performance Coaching Staff. In the summer of 2000, he served as Assistant Manager for the World Junior Track and Field Team. He was selected Head Coach for the 2004 USA Paralympics Track and Field Team held in Athens, Greece.

Coach Hoddle, with the support of H. Ross Perot, coached Tony Volpentest, the 1996 Paralympics 100 meter and 200 meter champion. He has also coached Marlon Shirley, triple world record holder, the world’s fastest amputee and the 2000 and 2004 Paralympics 100 meter Champion. He was selected by the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Committee to carry the Olympic torch in Olympia, WA on January 23, 2002 as well as lighting the cauldron and speaking on behalf of all the torchbearers.

Bryan is a nationally respected motivational speaker, having spoken to over 200 schools, organizations, and businesses over the past 20 years. He talks to business leaders, civic leaders, athletes, parents and school children about the five characteristics of a champion and how to apply those in one’s life; Vision, Focus, Persistence, Discipline and Commitment.

Coach Hoddle has taught for 30 years in public schools in the State of Washington. In March of 2008, he was the keynote speaker at the Washington School Counselors Association State Convention and keynoted the 2011 Washington State School Nurses Convention. He has also been a featured speaker at Boise State University, Agnes Scott College and the University of Arkansas. Additionally, he has spoken at track and field/cross country clinics in Washington, Oregon, California, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Alabama, Idaho, Montana and Texas.

He is highly respected in track and field. Coaching high school track and field, his track athletes have amassed 26 state championships, as well as numerous national age group titles. He is the recipient of the 1997 Pacific Northwest Track and Field “Contributor of the Year” award. He is also the Past-President of the Washington State Track and Field Coaches Association. He currently serves as Director, Northwest Track and Field in Seattle. Bryan is a graduate of Central Washington University where he majored in Physical Education and also received a minor in Education.

Scott Jackon

Scott holds a B.A. in Finance from Gonzaga University and is a Principal of Downriver Capital Management, LLC. Read More

Scott Jackon

Scott holds a B.A. in Finance from Gonzaga University and is a Principal of Downriver Capital Management, LLC. Downriver Capital Management is an institutional asset management company with over $30 million in assets under management. Scott has served in the Army National Guard for 11 years and has served two combat tours in Iraq as an Infantryman.

Kim Krummeck

Kim Krummeck has practiced law in the areas of veteran’s benefits, Social Security appeals, worker’s compensation and unemployment benefits for the past fifteen years. Read More

Kim Krummeck

Kim Krummeck has practiced law in the areas of veteran’s benefits, Social Security appeals, worker’s compensation and unemployment benefits for the past fifteen years.  He is a member of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims Bar Association, National Organization of Veterans Advocates, and Washington State Trial Lawyers Association.  He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims and the U.S. District Court for Western Washington.  He is an active volunteer with the Seattle based Unemployment Law Project and The Veterans Pro Bono Program.

While attending the Seattle University School of Law, Kim interned at the Tacoma law firm of Bonneville, Viert, Morton and McGoldrick and became an associate there upon graduation in 1997.  In 1999, he became a law clerk/bailiff for the Honorable Carol Schapira in King County Superior Court.  He later opened his own law practice while serving as a part-time staff attorney at the Unemployment Law Project.  He is currently focused solely on assisting veterans with their claims at the VA, Board of Veterans Appeals, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

Kim is a Seattle native and graduated from Garfield High School and the University of Washington.  He is a Vietnam era veteran having served in the U.S. Navy in Adak, Alaska.  He volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and is an avid cyclist and cross-country skier.

Stephanie J. Mankiewicz

Stephanie is the founder and General Manager of Pace Media. Read More

Stephanie J. Mankiewicz

Stephanie is the founder and General Manager of Pace Media. She has extensive experience in creative content consulting and media buying. The depth and breadth of her knowledge base encompasses mainstream advertising, such as television, cable and radio; marketing and technology; brand management and e-commerce. She has long standing relationships with television, radio, and cable companies.

Randy L. Meyers

Randy Meyers has been in the banking industry for 18 years starting at Key Bank in August of 2004 as a Senior Business Banking RM. Read More

Randy L. Meyers

Randy Meyers has been in the banking industry for 18 years starting at Key Bank in August of 2004 as a Senior Business Banking RM. Prior to joining Key, Randy worked for Bank of America, Evergreen Bank and Frontier Bank in a variety of capacities ranging from retail, Premier Banking, commercial banking, and many points in between.

Randy graduated from Pacific Coast Banking School at the University of Washington in August 2009 and was invited back in 2010 to serve in the role of Associate Director as a student/faculty liaison.

Samuel M. Rhodes

Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Samuel Rhodes is the author of the book “Changing The Military Culture of Silence.” Read More

Samuel M. Rhodes

Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Samuel Rhodes is the author of the book “Changing The Military Culture of Silence.” His book details his war time experience and his struggles with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Rhodes is a renowned guest speaker on the subject of PTSD and psychological resilience – speaking in hundreds of venues on the subject. He is the recipient of Lockheed Martin’s 2009 Community Service and Global Excellence Award for Building Effective Relationships. Sam holds an MBA from TUI University and is actively involved in the House for Heroes, The Wounded Warrior Horsemanship and Post Traumatic Stress Outreach programs, which he initiated at Fort Benning. CSM Rhodes is an Iraq veteran.

Wayne A. Ross

Mr. Ross has 30 years of progressive financial management experience in a multiplicity of settings. Read More

Wayne A. Ross

Mr. Ross has 30 years of progressive financial management experience in a multiplicity of settings.  His professional accomplishments include:  providing developers, hospitals and investors in senior living communities financial projections and evaluation of financial alternatives to determine project feasibility and securing financing and being responsible for the accounting, financial and cash management activities of a corporation and its partnership.

Mr. Ross holds a B.A. degree from Kansas State University in Nuclear Engineering.  He also holds a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln with a concentration in accounting and finance.  Mr. Ross is a certified C.P.A. Mr. Ross is a Vietnam era veteran.

Peter J. Whalen

Peter J. Whalen holds both a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Therapy and a Masters Degree in Hospital Management from Washington University in St. Louis, MS. Read More

Peter J. Whalen

Peter J. Whalen holds both a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Therapy and a Masters Degree in Hospital Management from Washington University in St. Louis, MS. He has also completed the Yale School of Organization & Management’s Executive Leadership curriculum. Mr. Whalen has over 30 years of experience in health care systems and service delivery in every facet of health care in both the public and private sectors. Mr. Whalen served in the United States Public Health Service, within its Hospitals & Clinics Division, where he served in various positions and postings throughout the system, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Mr. Whalen is also a Vietnam combat veteran who has been diagnosed with and treated for PTSD.

A few of Peter’s career highlights include overseeing the screening, testing and examination of thousands of Southeast Asian refugees arriving on the West Coast, fleeing the genocide that was occurring in their respective countries from the mid ’70s through the early ’80s; serving as the Chief Operating Officer of the Medical Center of Baltimore that was an interim organization and management structure established to transition Baltimore City Hospital’s 638 bed teaching facility from a municipal-owned health care system to its current status as Bayview Medical Center, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Johns Hopkins Health Care System; serving as the President & CEO of Behavioral Health Management, a wholly owned subsidiary of Voluntary Hospitals of America, one of the largest Not-For-Profit Health Care Systems in the country; and finally, serving as a senior business development strategist in the overall merger and acquisition plan of a small venture funded medical management information company that was ultimately scaled into McKesson Health Care Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of the pharmaceutical giant, McKesson Pharmaceuticals.

Bridget C. Cantrell, Ph. D.

Dr. Bridget Cantrell was appointed the 2008 and 2004 Outstanding Female Non-Veteran for her service to veterans by the Governor’s Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee and the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs. Read More

Bridget C. Cantrell, Ph. D.

Dr. Bridget Cantrell has worked with veterans for nearly twenty-years. She was appointed the 2008 and 2004 Outstanding Female Non-Veteran for her service by the Governor’s Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee and the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs. In 2008, she received the Didi Hirsch Foundation Leadership Award for Erasing the Stigma of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

She has her Doctorate of Philosophy in Clinical Psychology and is a private practitioner. She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of Washington. Dr. Cantrell is one of a small number of mental health providers for the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs PTSD Program. She is also a provider under the Mental Health Fee Service Program, Puget Sound Veterans Health Care System (Seattle VA Medical Center).

Dr. Cantrell is an honorary member of the Red Feather Society, which is a Native American Combat Veteran’s association.

Her dissertation research entitled “Social Support as a Function of PTSD within Washington State Vietnam Veteran Populations” was presented to the Washington State Senate Select Committee for Veterans as part of the Governor’s Master Plan for the needs of veterans. Her research was used for planning programs for the King County Veterans Program.

She also works with those veterans who have been sexually abused while serving in the military. In 2003, she received the Highest Productivity award for the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) PTSD program.

She is the Founder and CEO of Hearts Toward Home International, a charitable non-profit organization dedicated to the recovery and reintegration of trauma survivors. The organization has been given the Best of Bellingham Award in the Non-profit Charitable Organization category by the U.S. Local Business Association (USLBA).

Presently, she provides mental health services to active warriors all branches of the military, reservists, and Guard troops and their families. This work focuses on treating military personnel who have experienced combat exposure or trauma, family deployment stress and readjustment issues after coming home. She assists family members in supporting themselves and their deployed loved ones.

Dr. Cantrell is also involved with veteran advocacy at the Federal and State level to uphold the rights and ensure proper treatment of veterans. Dr. Cantrell works with first responders and perspective employers to assure that our veterans are treated fairly and with the respect they deserve in order to succeed in the civilian sector. She is also an expert witness for court cases for our military service members and civilians. She sits on the board for several veteran organizations.

She has appeared on television news programs to discuss veteran concerns, including CNN and FoxQ13.

She is frequently under contract with the Department of Defense to provide her workshops and lectures to military bases all over the U.S., Japan, Okinawa and Italy.

She has participated with various community veteran organizations: Combat Veterans International, Run for the Wall (Rolling Thunder) Memorial Ride and The Traveling Wall.

Dr. Cantrell is the author of “Turning Your Heart Toward Home,” “Down Range: To Iraq and Back,” “Once a Warrior: Wired for Life,” “Souls under Siege: The Affects of Multiple Troop Deployments—and How to Weather the Storm” and “Souls under Siege.”

Dr. Cantrell is a member of the American Psychological Association (APA), Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists (ATSS) and The International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS).

Please contact Dr. Cantrell directly to schedule a time when she can work with your unit or organization.

Phone: (360) 714-1525
Email bc@nullbridgetcantrell.com
View Website

Todd Baker

Todd is a Vice President / Senior Strategist for Grizzard Communications, a pioneer in the world of nonprofit fund raising and direct marketing. Read More

Todd Baker

Todd is a Vice President / Senior Strategist for Grizzard Communications, a pioneer in the world of nonprofit fund raising and direct marketing. For more than 25 years, Todd has helped some of the top charities in North America, assisting them in the development of Mission-Driven Marketing™ strategies. He is the author of the popular blog book, OrgMarketing.com, which is required reading for UCLA’s Digital Fundraising Course, which Todd teaches as part of the university’s Certification Program in Fundraising. He is also the author of the free e-book, “Nonprofit Websites,” the first of its kind, which has been downloaded by tens of thousands of charities in more than 50 countries. He writes the Fundraiser Confidential series for Fundraising Success Magazine and he is also known for the Baker’s Dozen fundraising series for the Nonprofit Times.

Todd is also a contributing author to one of the best selling nonprofit Internet books of all time, Nonprofit Internet Strategies and is also the author of Champions of Philanthropy. He is a former member of the Association Fundraising Professionals Board of Directors for Washington State. Todd spent more than 13 years with World Vision, one of the largest privately funded international relief and development organizations in the USA.

Larry L. Ashley

Professor Larry Ashley has been involved in the substance abuse and trauma field for over 30 years as a college professor, researcher and therapist. Read More

Larry L. Ashley

Professor Larry Ashley has been involved in the substance abuse and trauma field for over 30 years as a college professor, researcher and therapist. He is currently the Addictions Specialist/Mental Health Coordinator and Undergraduate Coordinator in the Department of Counselor Education at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Director of the Problem Gambling Treatment Program, and Clinical Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Internal Medicine at the University of Nevada School of Medicine.

Due to his extensive clinical experience, coupled with local, national and international speaking engagements, Professor Ashley is also considered to be a leading expert on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and issues related to addictions. He has a special interest in the impact of war on soldiers world wide and working with them to heal emotional and psychological wounds. His interest stems from his own experience as a Vietnam veteran.

Board of Advisors

Miles McFall, Ph.D.

Miles McFall, Ph.D. is Chief, Psychology Service and Director of Outpatient Mental Health Services—Seattle at VA Puget Sound Health Care System. Read More

Miles McFall, Ph.D.

Miles McFall, Ph.D. is Chief, Psychology Service and Director of Outpatient Mental Health Services—Seattle at VA Puget Sound Health Care System.  He is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, School of Medicine.  He formerly directed inpatient and outpatient Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Programs at VA Puget Sound Health Care System for nearly 25 years.  Dr. McFall has conducted a number of clinical treatment trials for Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and published widely on the topic of tobacco cessation in Veterans with PTSD. He provides leadership within the Department of Veterans Affairs in education and dissemination of evidence-based clinical practices for tobacco cessation in Veterans with PTSD and other mental disorders.

Jenny Sanford

Jenny is the former First Lady of South Carolina and the bestselling author of “Staying True.” Read More

Jenny Sanford

Jenny is the former First Lady of South Carolina and the bestselling author of “Staying True.” Her great grandfather, Joseph W. Sullivan, co-founded Skil Corporation which manufactured the first portable electric saw. She graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University, and upon earning her degree, she worked at Lazard Freres & Company, an investment bank based in New York City, eventually becoming a vice president in the firm’s mergers and acquisitions group.

While the First Lady of South Carolina, Ms. Sanford launched the Healthy South Carolina Challenge, an initiative to reduce the incidence of chronic preventable disease. She serves on the boards of several non-profits, including the Hollings Cancer Center, the Drayton Hall historical property in Charleston, the Coastal Community Foundation and the Children’s Hospital Advisory Fund.

Raymond

Raymond. D. Johnson

Known as R.J. to the Executive Team at the Invictus Foundation, Raymond continues to be an inspiration to all of us at the Foundation. Read More

Raymond

Raymond. D. Johnson

Director EMERITUS, Content and Digital Media

Known as R.J. to the Executive Team at the Invictus Foundation, Raymond continues to be an inspiration to all of us at the Foundation.  The Invictus Foundation began fourteen years ago as an all-volunteer effort that was capitalized and managed by its Founder in March of 2010. In April of 2010 we sought an individual with an affinity for our cause that was willing to volunteer his/her time helping us with content and digital media. His resume stood out from those of the others as not only having an affinity for our efforts but he himself throughout his life had struggled with behavioral health issues. He was highly knowledgeable about the lack of community resources available for those seeking help with their psycho-social issues and the public’s lack of knowledge about that fact.

The arc of R.J.’s illness was known to him. It would be, to quote Eugene O’Neil’s famous play, “a long day’s journey into night.”  Psychotherapy and psychotropics could slow the mental deterioration but not stop it. For a decade Raymond, despite his diagnosis, contributed to our vision and mission with unflagging energy and determination. He was and is in every sense of the word a warrior for better availability and accessibility for behavioral health services. Raymond personifies our name; Invictus-Latin for unconquered.

Thus, by a unanimous vote of the Board of the Invictus Foundation we bestowed upon Raymond the title of Director Emeritus, Content and Digital Media, Invictus Foundation. We believe by doing so his name and his contributions to executing the vision and mission of the Invictus Foundation will be recognized as one of the cornerstones of its success.

Richard C. Veith M.D.

Richard Veith is a Seattle native who has spent his entire academic career at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Read More

Richard C. Veith M.D.

Richard Veith is a Seattle native who has spent his entire academic career at the University of Washington School of Medicine.  He received his MD in 1973, which was followed by an Internal Medicine Internship and Psychiatry Residency.

In 1977 he joined the faculty of the UW Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences and was based at the Seattle VA Medical Center.  He became Director, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center in 1987 at the Seattle/American Lake VA and was appointed UW Professor in 1989.  He moved to the University of Washington Medical Center when he was appointed Chair, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences in 1998.

In 2003, he was appointed President, UW Medicine Physicians, the UW School of Medicine clinical practice plan.  Dr. Veith has conducted extensive research on the treatment of depression in patients with heart disease and has published more than 142 scientific publications.

He is currently participating in a project focused on the treatment of depression following stroke.  He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, with Added Qualifications in Geriatric Psychiatry and is listed in America’s Top Doctors and Best Doctors in America.  He was the 2005 American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Robert Cancro Academic Leadership Award: Best Chair

Jack Gutman

Jack Gutman

Born in San Francisco in 1925, Jack has become a powerful voice added to the chorus of warriors past and present encouraging active duty military personnel and veterans to seek help. Read More

Jack Gutman

Jack Gutman

A D- Day Warrior with a Powerful Message

Born in San Francisco in 1925, Jack grew up in a tough neighborhood of New York City where survival meant belonging to a gang. His gang was the Panthers. At 17 years old, wanting so desperately to serve his country, Jack convinced his father to sign for him and he enlisted in the Navy.

After training for months as a Medical Corpsman, his first active duty took him to England to prepare a hospital for the aftermath of the invasion of Europe. On D Day he landed between Utah and Omaha Beaches in the invasion of Normandy, having the difficult task of caring for those killed and wounded during the attack. He later served the same function i n the invasion of Okinawa. He is one of the few veterans who served in both theaters of the war.

After dealing with undiagnosed PTSD for 66 years, he finally got counseling and today leads a happy, healthy life. Today he is a one of the last l iving World War II Veterans who is able to share with us the realities of D Day, a colossal moment in our Country’s history.

In order to heal other veterans so they don’t feel so alone in their suffering Jack wrote a book about his experience. In the book One Veteran’s Journey to Heal the Wounds of War, he reveals his own nightmarish experience as an eighteen year old Navy corpsman on Omaha Beach during the Normandy invasion. His book is a genuine reflection of the scope and duration of his struggle with Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD). In it he describes his life-long panic attacks, night terrors, depression, and addictions, the latter which he used to “distract” myself from going mad”.

He was a kid sent to do a man’s job, and he did that heart wrenching job with valor, dignity, sometimes humor, kindness and grace. He is a living embodiment of why we should always and forever be grateful to those who sacrificed so much to keep us free.

Jack has become a powerful voice added to the chorus of warriors past and present encouraging active duty military personnel and veterans to seek help. By doing so they provide themselves and their families the opportunity to be taught the life skills necessary to practice resiliency in managing the aftermath of what was done and seen by them in the crucible of war.

Lori R. Bell

Lori Bell is a USAF veteran and founder of The National Association of Military Moms and Spouses or (NAMMAS). Read More

Lori R. Bell

Lori Bell is a USAF veteran and founder of The National Association of Military Moms and Spouses or (NAMMAS). Lori founded NAMMAS on the principle that every military woman should have a place of support, expert information, resources, and motivation to be the best she can be. To achieve her vision, Lori created a community of women centered with the common thread of their relationship with the military and ultimately with each other. She recognized the need for military moms and spouses to have a complete, easy and trusted resource that would guide them with the right information when they needed it, so they could spend their time implementing and growing personally and professionally. She also understood that women have different learning styles, different time commitments, and different levels of military experience.

With Lori’s guidance and direction, NAMMAS’ core focus has been to provide quality, researched, and tried and true strategies in various formats to meet military mom’s and spouse’s personal needs, while leveraging the power of a community. Through her leadership and vision, Lori created a cyberspace cafe of military moms and spouses whose membership has grown dramatically because it is filling a need that she envisioned: providing opportunities to military moms and spouses to learn and grow from each other from anywhere in the world, to get the assistance necessary to live a successful life, and to pursue their dreams and goals while being military moms and spouses. To find out more about NAMMAS, please visit http://www.nammas.org.

Major General Robert Dees

Major General (Retired) Robert F. Dees was born in Amarillo, Texas on 2 February 1950. Read More

Major General Robert Dees

Major General (Retired) Robert F. Dees was born in Amarillo, Texas on 2 February 1950. Graduating from the US Military Academy in 1972, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant of Infantry and awarded a Bachelor of Science degree. He also holds a Masters degree in operations research from the Naval Postgraduate School. His military education includes the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the US Army Command and General Staff College, and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. He was also a Research Fellow at the Royal College of Defence Studies in London and is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Virginia.

General Dees served in a wide variety of command and staff positions culminating in his last two assignments as Commander, Second Infantry Division, United States Forces Korea; and as Deputy Commanding General, V (US/GE) Corps in Europe, concurrently serving as Commander, US-Israeli Combined Task Force for Missile Defense.He commanded airborne, air assault, and mechanized infantry forces from platoon through division level.

General Dees’ awards and decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Service Medal (2), Legion of Merit (2), Meritorious Service Medal (6), Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the Republic of Korea Chonsu Order of National Security.General Dees has also been awarded the Ranger Tab, Senior Parachutist and Air Assault Badges, the Expert Infantryman’s Badge, the Army Staff Identification Badge, and the Joint Staff Identification Badge.

Officially retiring from the Army on 1 January 2003, Bob worked as Executive Director, Defense Strategies, Microsoft Corporation for two years.In that role, he formulated the strategy for Microsoft’s US Defense sector and conducted executive engagement with leadership of Microsoft’s major defense partners.In addition, Bob served as Microsoft lead for Reconstruction of Iraq, coordinating efforts with US Government, foreign governments, and private sector partners in the US and abroad.

General Dees is married to the former Kathleen Robinson of Houston, Texas. They have two married children and five grandchildren. Son Rob (with wife Kristy and three children), an Army Major, is currently pursuing a PhD at University of Texas.Daughter Ali (with husband Paul and two children) lives in Rochester, NY.General and Mrs. Dees currently reside in Williamsburg, VA.

While in the military, Bob and Kathleen served in board positions with USA Officer’s Christian Fellowship (OCF), Association of Christian Conferences and Teaching Services (ACCTS), Military Community Youth Ministries (MCYM), Great Dads, International Association of Evangelical Chaplains (IAEC); and as Vice President, North America, for the Association of Military Christian Fellowships (AMCF).He was recipient of the 2003 Centurion Award from the National Association of Evangelicals for long term support to chaplains while in command positions. Most recently, Bob served for six years (2004-2010) as Executive Director, Campus Crusade for Christ Military Ministry; providing spiritual nurture to troops and families around the world.

Bob frequently provides motivational talks at conferences, as well as commentary on current military and combat trauma issues in venues such as FOX Huckabee, FOX Business, Focus on the Family, CBN, American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC), and others.He was recently featured as one of 30 “Master Leaders” by George Barna.

General and Mrs. Dees are grateful for the privilege of continuing to serve our nation during these critical times.

Dr. Richard Ellenbogen

Dr. Richard Ellenbogen is Professor and Theodore Roberts Endowed Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. Read More

Dr. Richard Ellenbogen

Dr. Richard Ellenbogen is Professor and Theodore Roberts Endowed Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. He is Chief of Neuosurgery at Harborview Medical Center, as well as an attending neurosurgeon at Seattle’s Children’s Hospital. In addition, he is Director of the Seattle Sports Concussion Program, a joint program sponsored by Seattle Children’s Hospital and UW Medicine. His numerous clinical interests include pediatric and adult brain tumors, trauma surgery, Chiari malformations, minimally invasive endoscopic brain surgery and concussion. Dr. Ellenbogen has published extensively and is actively involved at the national level. He has served as President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) and is now Co-Chair, National Football League (NFL) Head, Neck and Spine Medicine Committee. His lab is conducting NIH funded research on molecular imaging and targeting of brain tumors using nanoparticles.

Dr. Ellenbogen completed his Neurosurgery Training in 1989 at The Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School Program. Prior to joining the Univeristy of Washington, Dr. Ellenbogen was Chairman of the National capital Area Neurosurgery Consortium and Residency Program Director, (Walter Reed Army Medical Centerand Bethesda National Naval Medical Center), and Neurosurgery Director and Co-Principal Investigator of the Department of Defense Veterans Head Injury Progra, also at Walter Reed Medical Cente. Dr. Ellenbogen also served as Commander of the 252nd Medical Detachment KE Team (XIII Airborne Corp) during Operation Desert Shield/Storm, and was awarded a Bronze Star or his service.

Senator Slade Gordon

Mr. Gordon joined K&L Gates as of counsel after spending 18 years representing Washington state in the United States Senate. Read More

Senator Slade Gordon

Areas of Practice

Mr. Gordon joined K&L Gates as of counsel after spending 18 years representing Washington state in the United States Senate. Mr. Gordon’s years in the Senate saw him appointed to powerful committee posts including Appropriations; Budget; Commerce; Science and Transportation; and Energy and Natural Resources. Mr. Gordon served as the chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee (1995-2001), the Commerce Subcommittees on Consumer Affairs (1995-99), and Aviation (1999-2000). He was a member of the Republican leadership as counsel to the majority leader (1996-2000).

Mr. Gordon began his political career in 1958 as a Washington state representative, he went on to serve as state House majority leader. In 1968 Mr. Gordon was elected attorney general of Washington state where he argued 14 cases before the United States Supreme Court. In June 1980, Mr. Gordon received the Wyman Award, the hightest honor accorded by the National Association of Attorney’s General.

Mr. Gordon also served on the president’s Consumer Advisory Council (1975-77) and on the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission from 1969-1981. He was chairman of the Washington State Law & Justice Commission (1969-76), and served as an instructor in constitutional law to public administration graduate students at the University of Puget Sound.

Professional/Civic Activities

  • Appointed as Commissioner to the Washington State Redistricting Commission (2011-2012)
  • Co-chairman, Bipartisan Policy Council’s National Transportation Policy Project (2007-present)
  • Member, National War Powers Commission, University of Virginia Miller Center of Public Affairs (2007-2008)
  • Appointed to serve on the British Petroleum Refineries Independent Safety Review Panel (November 2005)
  • Commissioner, National Commission On Terrorist Attacks Upon teh United States (2002-2004)
  • Member, Markle Foundation, Task Force on NationalSecurity in the Information Age (2002-2006, 2008-present)
  • Served on the National Commission on Federal Election Reform (2001-2002)

Court Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. Court o Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington

Bar Memberships

Washington State

Education

L.L.B., Columbia University, 1953
B.A., Dartmouth College, 1950 (magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa)

Achievements

The American Jewish Congress 2006 Community Leadership Award
Discovery Institute Statesmanship Award (2004)
Best of Puget Sound for Contribution to the 9/11 Commission (2004)

Senator Mike Gravel

Senator Gravel enlisted in the U.S. Army (1951-54) and served as special adjutant in the Communication Intelligence Services and as a Special Agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps. Read More

Senator Mike Gravel

Senator Gravel enlisted in the U.S. Army (1951-54) and served as special adjutant in the Communication Intelligence Services and as a Special Agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps. He received a B.S. in Economics from  Columbia University, New York City, and holds four honorary degrees in law and public affairs.

Mike Gravel served in the Alaska House of Representatives from 1963-66 and as Speaker from 1965-66. He then represented Alaska in the U.S. Senate from 1969-81. He served on the Finance, Interior, and Environmental and Public Works committees, chairing the Energy, Water Resources, Buildings and Grounds, and Environmental Pollution subcommittees. Senator Gravel was a Democratic Presidential aspirant in 2008.

He founded and served as president of The Democracy Foundation, Philadelphia II, and Direct Democracy, nonprofit corporations dedicated to the establishment of direct democracy in the United States through the enactment of the National Initiative for Democracy by American voters.

Books authored by Senator Gravel are “Jobs and More Jobs,” and ‘Citizen Power.” He lectures and writes about governance, foreign affairs, economics, Social Security, tax reform, energy, environmental issues and democracy.

Colonel Jack Jacobs

Colonel Jack Jacobs holds this country’s highest military award, The Congressional Medal of Honor, awarded to him by President Richard M. Nixon on October 9, 1969 for conspicuous gallantry displayed during combat operations in Vietnam. Read More

Colonel Jack Jacobs

Colonel Jack Jacobs holds this country’s highest military award, The Congressional Medal of Honor, awarded to him by President Richard M. Nixon on October 9, 1969 for conspicuous gallantry displayed during combat operations in Vietnam. He retired from the Army in 1987, after 20 years of service.

Today, he is widely regarded as one of the world’s most knowledgeable military analysts. His career has bridged the disparate worlds of the military, of business, and of academia. Colonel Jacobs serves on a number of charitable boards of directors and is the vice chairman of the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. He holds the McDermott Chair of Humanities and Public Affairs at the U.S. Military Academy and appears about 500 times annually on television providing commentary on defense issues, terrorism and international affairs.

General William F. Kernan

General William F. Kernan was born in Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He entered Officer Candidate School as a Staff Sergeant and was commissioned an Infantry Officer in November 1968. Read More

General William F. Kernan

UNITED STATES ARMY, RETIRED
FORMER SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER, ATLANTIC (SACLANT)
and COMMANDER IN CHIEF, U.S. JOINT FORCES COMMAND

General William F. Kernan was born in Fort Sam Houston, Texas.  He entered Officer Candidate School as a Staff Sergeant and was commissioned an Infantry Officer in November 1968.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and a Master of Arts degree in Personnel Administration.  His military education includes the Infantry Advanced Course, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and the U.S. Army War College.

General Kernan has commanded at Platoon through Combatant Command level.  He has commanded two Airborne Companies, two Ranger Companies, an Airborne Infantry Battalion, a Ranger Battalion, and the 75th Ranger Regiment.  For two years he was an exchange officer to England as a rifle company commander in the 3rd Battalion, the British Parachute Regiment.  He was the Assistant Division Commander (Maneuver) of the 7th Infantry Division, followed by an assignment as the Director of Plans, Policy, and Assessments, J5, United States Special Operations Command.  He commanded the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) for two years and the XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg for 30 months.

He has participated in numerous contingency operations.  He has extensive experience in joint operations and warfighting.  Combat tours have included Vietnam, Grenada, and Panama.  During Operation JUST CAUSE, he led the 75th Ranger Regiment in its combat parachute assault onto Rio Hato.

General Kernan was appointed to the grade of General in July 2000.  On 5 September 2000, General Kernan assumed command as the Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic and Commander in Chief, United States Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Virginia.  He retired from the Army on 1 December 2002 and assumed the position of Senior Vice President and General Manager for International Operations for MPRI, a wholly owned subsidiary of L-3 Communications.    He retired from this position on 1 March 2010 developing the business from $45 million to $525 million in seven years.  He is President of QUAD B, LLC.  General Kernan sits on several boards and is a Senior Fellow for the Association of the United States Army.

General Kernan’s awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal (with oak leaf cluster), Distinguished Service Medal (with oak leaf cluster), Legion of Merit (with 3 oak leaf clusters), Bronze Star Medal with “V” device, Bronze Star Medal (with oak leaf cluster), Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal (with three oak leaf clusters), Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal (with four oak leaf clusters), Army Achievement Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge (with combat star), Air Assault Badge and Ranger Tab.

He is married to the former Marianne Purnell of Alexandria, Virginia.  They have one son, Keith.  They reside in Pinehurst, NC.

John E. Lee

John E. Lee, a Vietnam War veteran and retired Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army, was appointed director of the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs on November 1, 2005, by Governor Christine Gregoire. Read More

John E. Lee

Director of Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs

John E. Lee, a Vietnam War veteran and retired Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army, was appointed director of the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs on November 1, 2005, by Governor Christine Gregoire.

As agency director, his responsibilities include advocacy and outreach for the state’s more than 670,000 veterans and their families, as well as overseeing three veterans homes throughout the state.

A native of West Virginia, Lee entered the U.S. Army in 1968, and spent the next 21 years serving in the Army’s Infantry.  He served in the Republic of Vietnam with the 173rd Airborne Brigade and assignments with the 82nd Airborne Division, Drill Sergeant, Fort Jackson, SC, First Sergeant in the 3-60th Infantry (Berlin Brigade), and multiple assignments as Command Sergeant Major.  He finished his Army career as the Command Sergeant Major of the 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, retiring in 1990.

After completing his military service, Lee entered the public sector, joining WDVA as an administrative assistant.  In 1994 he was appointed as the agency Deputy Director and has served with the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs for a total of 20 years.

He holds three degrees, including a Masters in Health Administration. He has served on the Army Chief of Staff Retiree Council, he is the cochairman for the Fort Lewis Retiree Council, and is a proud member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Disable Veterans of American, and the Association of the United States Army.

Mr. Lee and his wife Tammy reside in Olympia.  They have 2 adult sons, 4 grandsons, and one granddaughter.

Invictus Foundation

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