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Wednesday, June 24, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Time on the river helps injured combat veterans
By Jim cornelius
News Editor
There is nothing more
soothing to the spirit than
time on the river, drifting with
the current and putting a line
in the water. That’s true for
anyone; it’s especially true
for veterans who have been
injured in the service of their
country.
Warfighter Outfitters of
Sisters (www.facebook.com/
warfighteroutfitters) was
founded by veterans and is
run by veterans to provide fel-
low veterans with the oppor-
tunity to get into the outdoors
and pursue activities they love
— despite troubled times and
injuries.
The program, which has
put 130 veterans on the water
in just a few short months, got
a major boost with the deliv-
ery of a highly customized
drift boat by Pavati Fishing
Boats out of White City,
Oregon.
“It’s been a seven-month
process,” said guide Brett
Miller, himself a wounded
combat veteran from Sisters.
“The boat has three doors in
the sides. Most drift boats
don’t. The doors allow the
most severely wounded guys
with mobility problems to get
in and out of the boat on their
own.
“On their own is a big
deal,” Miller said. “They
don’t want to ask for help.”
The boat is designed to
safely accommodate three
wheelchairs through “fairly
technical water,” Miller said.
Pavati also provided a
vinyl wrap with the nonprof-
it’s logo on it.
“It’s a mobile billboard for
the nonprofit,” Miller said.
The premier boat-builder
made Warfighter Outfitters
“a really good deal” to make
the boat happen, and the non-
profit paid for the boat out of
donated funds. The organi-
zation is entirely volunteer-
based, which means the funds
it raises go directly into equip-
ment and transportation and
other necessities to get vet-
erans on the water or out into
the hunting field.
A little goes a long way.
Miller said that $100 can get
four guys down the river for
a day, covering fuel, shuttles,
permits, licenses, and the like.
The organization still
needs some fly rods and wad-
ers and other equipment, and
individual donations aren’t
coming in at a rate that can
sustain the work.
“We’re trying to get some
corporate sponsorship going
on,” Miller said.
Warfighter Outfitters got
a major boost from a $20,000
donation by Wounded Warrior
Project, which covered
two-thirds of the outfitter’s
$30,000 startup costs.
The experience is a healing
one.
“It really gives these guys,
first of all, a break,” Miller
says. “Turn off the noise and
just relax.”
The camaraderie that
develops in a fishing boat is
an important part of the expe-
rience for veterans who miss
the sense of brotherhood they
found in the service. And vet-
erans who have shared similar
experiences can talk to each
other.
That’s never forced, but it
does tend to happen.
“Without any cueing or
saying anything, the prob-
lems start to come out,”
Miller says. “Next thing you
know, it’s a PTSD clinic on
the water … without anybody
even really realizing it.”
Miller, who has struggled
with his own injuries and
with PTSD, has found peace
and purpose in helping other
wounded veterans.
“It’s also a disabled com-
bat veteran taking them out on
photo by riCCardo savi
Sisters fishing guide Brett Miller guided wounded desert Storm/Iraqi
freedom veteran Michael Pence of eugene on the McKenzie river.
the water,” he noted.
And Warfighter Outfitters
is a force multiplier for vet-
erans helping veterans. It’s
already formed friendships
and a support network for its
clients.
“Almost every single guy
I take out says ‘Hey, if you
need any help, let me know.’”
And Miller urges them to
“find those guys who have
fallen through the cracks and
get ’em out.”
Getting ’em out means
hunting as well as fishing.
“I had 37 veterans put in
for tags this season,” Miller
reported.
As it has done with fish-
ing, Warfighter Outfiitters has
developed equipment and pro-
tocols to mitigate disabilities
to get veterans out doing what
they love. The idea is to get
them to where they can pursue
their hunting on their own.
“The guys just love being
outside, being in a hunting
camp,” Miller said. “It feels
like an operation to them.”
Individual contributions to
Warfighter Outfitters are wel-
come. Visit www.gofundme.
com/warfighteroutfitters or
donate at U.S. Bank.
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