MELWOOD VETERAN'S SERVICES WEBSITE REWRITE

May, 2020

Melwood Veterans Services, LLC

Melwood is all about finding ways to honor our veterans and we have helped veterans with employment and other services throughout our long history of supporting individuals with differing abilities. More recently, the Global War on Terror has produced more than a half-million American veterans with service-related injuries. This is in addition to the pre-9/11 era veteran population, many of whom are still struggling with service-related trauma. Thousands of these men and women are coping with invisible wounds such as post-traumatic stress (PTSd), traumatic brain injuries (TBI), moral injury, or are processing the human impacts of their military service. These warriors struggle to recover not only their health, but also their civilian or military lives: maintaining employment or duty status, finding jobs, rebuilding or maintaining family relationships, and figuring out their place in our communities. Their path is far from easy, and many need our support. In response, we decided to increase our focus on assisting veterans by forming Melwood Veterans Services (MVS) as a distinct entity within Melwood. MVS is where veterans, service members, families, and caregivers can find a community – all geared towards recognizing and serving those who have served.

Melwood Veterans Services’ Mission

The MVS mission: To empower veterans struggling with the effects of service-related trauma to transform their own lives and exercise their fundamental right to the pursuit of happiness.

Our mission is something we strongly believe in. It is more than just words to honor our veterans. It is the call to action that motivates us to improve the lives of those who have served our country.  Over the years, Melwood Veterans Services has  supported hundreds of veterans to overcome physical, behavioral, and emotional challenges associated with post-traumatic stress, mild traumatic brain injury, and other service-related traumas.

Operation Tohidu®

Operation Tohidu® is Melwood Veterans Services’ flagship program.  It consists of 5-day intensive retreats offered at no cost to participants.  By many accounts, Operation Tohidu® is one of the most intensive programs for veterans and active-duty personnel with service-related traumas. Melwood Veterans Services is in the business of restoration: Restoring hope that one is loved unconditionally, restoring faith that one's life matters, and renewing wholeness to broken hearts and wounded souls.

Veterans have dedicated their lives to the protection of our liberties and rights. Operation Tohidu® serves them and challenges them, in some cases for the first time in a life dedicated to helping others - to pursue their right to happiness and to move forward from their service experiences with renewed positivity and pride.

"Tohidu" is a Cherokee word meaning peace of mind, body, and spirit. Operation Tohidu® focuses on confidence-building, outdoor activities, and group discussion in a relaxed, positive environment using proven techniques for the self-management of symptoms, stressors, and responses. Our highly trained staff of certified recreational support professionals facilitate activities that highlight individual ability and teamwork. Promoting positive engagement, transformative discussions, and reframing the traumatic experience.

The program design facilitates post-traumatic growth and drives or initiates progress on a participant's post-trauma journey. Operation Tohidu® assists participants in changing their mindset, reconnecting with their spiritual selves, adapting their approach to trauma, and regaining a sense of wellbeing and purpose. Melwood Veterans Services' adventure-based programming and positive psychology approach combine to encourage participants to overcome obstacles to their recovery and achieve the Operation Tohidu® motto of:

“Peace with the Past, through Power in the Present”

Approach

Each session serves between 8-16 participants, including male and female veterans and service members representing all branches of service and their spouses, partners or caregivers for a couple's retreat. In a peaceful and secluded atmosphere, participants connect with nature and their fellow warriors. To become empowered with alternative techniques to manage anxieties, post-traumatic stress, and service-related issues. Download the Operation Tohidu® brochure to learn more about the program. Our short-duration, high-impact approach has a transformative impact on participants who make the trip to reconnect with their warrior-selves and experience post-traumatic growth.

Types of Retreats

MVS recognizes the specific needs of veterans and that a “one size fits all” approach is not optimal.  As a result, MVS offers different Operation Tohidu® retreats for various populations.

Men’s Operation Tohidu® - These retreats are open to all male veterans from any era, regardless of time-in-service, who are suffering from the effects of service-related trauma. 

Women’s OperationTohidu® - These retreats are open to all female veterans from any era, regardless of time-in-service, who are suffering from the effects of service-related trauma.

Men’s Operation Tohidu® for Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) - These retreats are open to all male veterans from any era, regardless of time-in-service, who are suffering from the effects of military sexual trauma.  

Women’s Operation Tohidu® for Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) - These retreats are open to all female veterans from any era, regardless of time-in-service, who are suffering from the effects of military sexual trauma.

Couples’ Operation Tohidu® - These retreats are open to all veterans and their partners who are struggling with the effects that service-related trauma is having on their relationship and/or family. 

Activities

Operation Tohidu® retreats are held at Melwood's 108-acre Retreat and Recreation Center in Nanjemoy, Maryland. Participants use ropes courses, zip lines, kayaks, equine therapy, and other adventurous activities to augment educational sessions, periods of introspection and reflection, group discussions, and spiritual reinforcement throughout the retreat.

What happens after I apply?

Once your application is completed and submitted, Melwood Veterans Services will reach out to you, typically within 48 hours of registration. The purpose of this contact will be to learn more about your situation, determine which retreat might be the best fit for you, and explore scheduling options. Since participation in Operation Tohidu® is voluntary and handled with the utmost discretion, we wish to ensure that your time with us is as productive and useful as possible. To this end, a separate, individual call is arranged with a member of our staff to determine your exact needs, situation, and joint goals for our engagement.

About Melwood Veterans Services LLC

MVS is a non-profit organization in the Melwood family of services.  It grew out of the Operation Tohidu® program, founded in 2014 as an experiential and healing retreat for veterans and service members. Our team is comprised of veterans and specialists who have direct experience with the issues at hand, either from their military service or intimate, relevant work in support of those who served.

MVS offers several services to our Nation’s veterans. Through this non-profit service organization, veterans can find assistance with career development and community reintegration. Our transformative retreat program continues to promote the mantra “Pease with the past, through power in the present.” This encourages veterans in the program to reframe trauma, injuries, or memories from war and military experiences, so they can go through life with renewed purpose and positivity.

MVS also provides corporate leadership training on best practices for hiring and retaining veterans with differing abilities. Additionally, Melwood’s longstanding history of employing and training veterans with physical, behavioral, or other service-related challenges revealed a gap in employment-related services for wounded warriors. Melwood human resources and vocational support services staff work in a close partnership with MVS to create and implement appropriate accommodations for veterans living with post-traumatic stress, other behavioral issues, and/or physical challenges.

Support

MVS provides a unique approach to serving our Nation's veterans. From securing a stable and rewarding career to learning how to manage the invisible wounds of service-related trauma, MVS provides the resources needed to make a difference in every veteran's life.

Your support and the involvement of our community is vital in fulfilling our mission. Whether it's through supplying resources, offering opportunities for employment, spreading the word about what we do, or monetary donations; we at MVS appreciate your generosity and attention to our cause!

Opportunities to Support

Donate

Your tax-deductible gift demonstrates gratitude for service and extraordinary sacrifice. Your gift will enable Melwood Veterans Services to provide our wounded veterans with the resources they need to achieve the fullest possible recovery.

Sponsorship

Become an MVS sponsor and make your donation go even further. Sponsors may be recognized with signage at the Operation Tohidu® retreat site, on Melwood's website and social media, and in Melwood's annual report. Explore the sponsorship levels below and contact Melwood to discuss sponsorship for this transformative program.

• Homecoming: Sponsor Supports 20 veterans ($50,000)

• Patriot Defender: Sponsor Supports 10 veterans ($25,000)

• Liberty: Sponsor Supports five veterans ($12,500)

• Providence: Sponsor supports two veterans ($5,000)

• Clean Slate: Sponsor supports one veteran ($2,500)

Partnership

If you serve veterans, provide services, resources, or training and are looking for ways to connect with veterans in need of a partner specializing in transformational life-skills and workplace training, we'd love to hear from you. We have found that many services offered by veterans services organizations typically fulfill a specific need, but may not address the full scope of issues faced by today's veterans. We are always looking to build new and value-adding partnerships to best serve our veterans.