ZeroMils

Service can be as simple as “showing up” for your community. And Noah Currier has been “showing up” for ours every day since the moment he realized staying “on the move” or #OscarMike was the key to #thriving. Since starting the Oscar Mike Foundation 15 years ago, 1,500 Veterans with significant disabilities have been through their life-changing programs. The #1 measure of their impact since its inception on 11/11/11 — Not a single Veteran has taken his or her own life since they joined the Oscar Mike movement. It’s a connected community — a #tribe — that shows up for one another again and again That was on full display last night at the hometown premiere of “Sum Function” a film that Noah produced and co-directed over the past few years and has been critically acclaimed with numerous awards at three different film festivals in Annapolis, Beverly Hills and Houston. Laura Schmiegel and I were proud to #showup for and with Noah and the Oscar Mike Militia in front of a hometown crowd in Rockford Illinois that couldn’t stop the tears, the joy, and the cheering for what Noah has created with this film — not just for Veterans but for the disabled community as a whole and for anyone who has faced or will face struggles in their life. We were proud to share this very special evening with Amit Acharya from PLS Class X and his wife Rohini Acharya, and welcome them to the Oscar Mike family, which we are tremendously proud to be a part of too. . #America250 #ActionsSpeakLouder #Day84 #250DaysOfService #SemperFidelis

Remembering and honoring someone who will always be a hero to me — Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Shea, USMC. Kevin was killed in a rocket attack in Iraq on his 38th birthday, September 14, 2004, leaving behind his wife and two children. I share this story every Memorial Day. Yet, 22 years after Kevin’s death my message is a little different. Over the past few weeks I’ve seen a lot of leaders in the military community talking about the solemnity of Memorial Day, discouraging people from wishing others a“Happy Memorial Day” weekend. I can’t help but think Kevin would want us to do exactly that — taking pause to remember the fallen and then celebrating the weekend with families and friends, embracing every moment with the people we love, like it’s our last. When you read the story below, I hope you smile like I do every time I think of this extraordinary man who I was honored to call friend. And I hope you will live every day, like I will — honoring his memory by serving others. —————- Kevin was my roommate and best friend at The Basic School in Quantico, Virginia from June 1989 to Dec 1989. For six months we shared a room, challenges, and most of all laughs. This photo, taken on July 27, 1989, of Kevin carrying me nearly 3 miles on his shoulders at a 12 min pace down "Engineer Trail", encapsulates everything that made him one of the most incredible men who ever graced my life and this world. Following a night out in Georgetown that Kevin planned for my 22nd birthday, he and our other roommates reset my alarm clock so I would wake up just 6 minutes before morning formation. In a rush I shaved and threw on my uniform only to forget my socks. Kevin watched with a big smile and a glint in his eye as I scampered around the room and ran down the passageway and ladderwell of O'Bannon Hall to formation. After hiking to the range, Kevin sat next to me in contorted shooting positions, chuckling out loud as I struggled and complained through rifle pre-quals with blisters on my feet. As the long day ended Kevin replied to my moaning by offering to carry me back the whole way if I stopped complaining. This led to us wagering a case of beer, and the gauntlet was thrown down. For three miles we traded quips. Kevin's face turned bright red and he was soaked with sweat, but he never missed a beat. Needless to say, that night he was a case of beer richer. As we both limped down to the chow hall, we laughed together, like we did everyday, at what had transpired over the past 24 hours. I'll never forget Kevin Shea - his smile, his laugh, his optimism, the glint in his bright blue eyes, and the way he always lit up a room. He left an indelible mark on me and the lives of everyone he touched during his 38 years on this earth. He taught me and others who knew him, through example and his own "joie de vivre," to embrace every day, every hour, every minute like it was our last. I wish that I still had him in my life. LtCol Kevin Shea was truly one of a kind.

Memorial Day weekend took on a whole new meaning yesterday when a few dozen people messaged me saying how special it was to read the story about my best friend, Lieutenant Colomel Kevin Shea who was killed in Iraq on his 38th birthday. Leaving behind his wife Amy, son Michael, and daughter, Brenna who became a Marine herself. Many of them also asked me to share more about Kevin’s life, and read on their own about his unique path to becoming a Marine Officer after graduating from the Air Force Academy, as well as his passion for rugby. The best way of honoring his legacy of service and relating how extraordinary a person he was, is to share this 30 minute documentary that PBS did about Kevin called “Fallen Hero”. If you want to reflect on the meaning of Memorial Day and the selfless service of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and their families left behind take a half hour to watch the video in comments when you wake up tomorrow morning. #NeverForget #MemorialDayWeekend

A few months ago, we sat before the House Committee on Small Business and made a pledge as a veteran owned small business ourselves We told them ZeroMils would give Veteran and military spouse entrepreneurs a real seat at the table — not a symbolic one. Not a panel where their story gets told about them while they watch from the audience. An actual seat. A real voice. In the national conversation about their futures. And a place to help build actionable solutions and be part of necessary change. June 10 is where we deliver on that promise. Most people don't know this is the first time in our nation’s history since the end of WWII that Veterans under-index on small business ownership. Veteran and military spouse small business owners are one of the most under-leveraged economic forces in this country. We bring discipline, adaptability, mission focus, and an extraordinary ability to lead under pressure. These are the skills that build companies, create jobs, and strengthen communities. And yet too many of us navigate transition, education, and entrepreneurship without the networks, the knowledge, and the capital we deserve. This all changes at our 3rd Annual Military Thriving Change Forum at Georgetown, where we'll prioritize education and entrepreneurship pathways; feature subject matter experts who will open apertures and expand options; and give thousands of Veteran and military spouse entrepreneurs access to this conversation both in person and virtually. If you're a Veteran entrepreneur — this Forum is for you. If you're a military spouse building something — this Forum is for you. If you lead an organization that wants to be part of the solution — this Forum is for you. We made a pledge. Come help us keep it. June 10 | Georgetown University | 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM ET Links to register in person or virtually in comments. Don’t miss it! Be pat of change.

In 2011 we built the founding team of 30 leaders at Hiring Our Heroes, and in partnership with the White House and thousands of companies large and small, we built a movement — one that fundamentally changed perceptions about the value of military talent in the workplace. What we’ve learned over the past 15 years is simple: hiring a Veteran or military spouse is not the finish line. It's the start line. Too many organizations check the box. They recruit, they post the photo, they celebrate Veterans Day, and then they wonder why retention suffers, why engagement is flat, why the narrative still paints our community as damaged, struggling, in need of saving. That narrative is wrong, and it's costing our military. It’s costing our community. In 2023, our military missed its enlistment goals by 41,000. 41,000 young Americans who didn't raise their hand. Partly because what they see and hear about military service doesn't match the reality of what service produces. This is why ZeroMils launched our Military Thriving community model at our inaugural Change Forum at Georgetown in October 2024. ZeroMils exists to change the broken Veteran narrative. Not with a campaign. With a movement. On June 10 at Georgetown University, we will host our 3rd Annual Military Thriving Change Forum — bringing together leaders from across the nation who believe in collaboration and innovation to go beyond lip service, and create thriving cultures and communities that drive growth and impact at the local level. They are corporate, nonprofit, government, community partners who have the reach, the resources, and the resolve to shift the narrative for good. If you believe Veterans and military families are assets — to your company, to your community, to this country — we’re asking you to be in that room and take your seat at the table. Whether it is in person or virtually on our YouTube and LinkedIn livestream, #JoinUs. Changing the broken narrative is what our community needs. We own the narrative, and it’s on us to change it. And it matters more right now than it ever has. Register at the link in comments 👇 Photos: From the first two national Change Forums at Georgetown. #MilitaryThriving #ZeroMils #ChangeForumDC #ActionsSpeakLouder