Soldiers risk everything for their country, yet they often struggle to transition back to normal civilian life after returning home from war, and each day, 22 veterans end up committing suicide in the United States due to that lack of support.
Unfortunately, this is a reality that one Wisconsin teen, Haley Orlowski, is all too familiar with. Upon returning home from duty, two of her cousins struggled to cope with their Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and ultimately died after never getting the help they both desperately needed.
Haley always remembered her Marine cousin Stephen Keyes as funny and upbeat, but after a few rounds of deployment in Afghanistan, he developed PTSD and shot himself at just 26-years-old. “He wasn’t very open, which is a problem that many soldiers with PTSD suffer from. They think people might see them as being weak. So they suffer by themselves,” Haley said.
To put an end to the needless suffering and deaths, Haley has placed a jar or bag in the 48 homerooms at her Wauwatosa West High School with a goal of raising $22 in each.
Once she raises enough money, Haley will donate everything to the Project Welcome Home Troops, which uses alternative methods like meditation and controlled breathing workshops to help returning veterans cope with their transition.
“Everybody keeps giving me change so that my homeroom wins. Everybody is super supportive of this. They’re taking it seriously,” Haley said.
Can you believe Haley is using her own family tragedy to take on a much bigger social issue? Let us know if you were inspired by this ambitious high schooler, and please SHARE this amazing story on Facebook to help Haley meet her goal.
[Featured image credit: GoFundMe.com/KeepingVetsAlive]
After Seeing What PTSD Can Do To Soldiers, This Teen Is Keeping Them Alive One Coin At A Time is an article from: LifeDaily