“A man good who is good enough to shed blood for his country, is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards,”
Words uttered by former president Theodore Roosevelt ring true for the Second Tour Campaign, based out of northeast Tennessee. In what started out as just a mission to provide a beanie and a hoodie turned into so much more, according to the organization’s president Joshua Gilreath.
“Our motto is that this isn’t your momma’s kind of nonprofit,” Gilreath said with a laugh Wednesday. “We’re veterans wanting to help other veterans.”
Second Tour Campaign was created eight years ago by Joshua and his wife, Shannon. The mission to help homeless and depression for veterans locally means is near to the heart of Joshua, who served as a Staff Sergeant with the U.S. Air Force with two tours in Iraq and one tour in Saudi Arabia by working security.
“This is something that meant a lot to us,” Joshua said about the inception of the group. “What started as an idea to give hoodies and beanies to veterans turned into us being able to give around 5,000 through the help with restaurants and local businesses.”
From that point, Second Tour Campaign began to grow.
“It’s been an absolute blessing to see how things have grown since,” he added. “At one point, my wife and I talked about if we can even continue Second Tour since it was starting to outgrow us.”
But any problem can be tackled head on by the armed forces. The board for the group is comprised of either veterans, wives of veterans or widows of servicemen, Gilreath said.
“Since we’ve started, we have been able to help over 375 veterans,” he added. “But when you look at it, this is a group by veterans, for veterans, working with no money from the government.”
One of the items that makes Second Tour Campaign a wildcard is no involvement with the government, Gilreath said. The organization is classified as a nonprofit group, 501(c)3, with all funds going into the group, going back to veterans. Individuals able to write-off any type of donation for tax purposes.
“That’s one of the best things about this group,” he added. “If we hear from someone who may have trouble paying their water bill, we take it up with our board. If we receive the paperwork that they are from the service, we go from there to help them where we can.”
Second Tour Campaign has stretched across the state and even peaked interest down in Knoxville.
“At one point I went through the directory at UT (University of Tennessee) and emailed 120 people,” Joshua said. “Around here, just about everyone you know is a Tennessee Volunteer fan. I heard back from two people, the marketing director and associate athletic director. At that time, they were switching their gear from Adidas to Nike and they donated the gear to us.”
Giving back to the veterans locally is what Second Tour Campaign wants to accomplish, Gilreath said. One of the most recent events included renting out the Carmike theater in Johnson City, allowing veterans’ families to get VIP treatment to watching the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie.
“I have a family, I know how rough it can be to spend $50 at the movies,” Joshua said. “Even for a veteran that makes $60,000 a year, it could be tough for them to find time to have a nice family trip together.”
While becoming a staple in the Tri-Cities, the group is picking up traction in Carter County thanks to the help of Hampton native Adam Townsend – a professional mixed-martial arts fighter.
“Pound for pound, he is the best fighter in Tennessee,” Joshua said. “He’s the posterchild of Carter County right now. Around here, people enjoy hunting and sports, like football and MMA and Adam is a perfect person for us to be with. I’m good friends with him and I knew it was perfect to work with him as partners just to bridge that gap into Carter County.”
Gilreath added there are big plans ahead for working in the area. With the lack of a Salvation Army-type of facility in Carter County, Joshua added Second Tour Campaign is looking at establishing a measure like that in Elizabethton.
“We want to continue to grow to help our veterans,” he said. “On average, we lose 22 veterans a day to suicide. You look at other groups, not to take anything away from them, and they mention that. But we don’t want to be defined by that for this generation. We want to take pride in our veterans and know they we are there for them.”
Second Tour Campaign is exiting the infancy phase and has emerged as viable option for veterans struggling with finances, homelessness, or post-traumatic stress disorder.
“We’ve worked together with the VA, Salvation Army, ARCH and other veteran groups,” Joshua said. “Anytime we can help, they contact us. We want to offer different options for our veterans, whether they are struggling or just wanting a chance to get away.”
Joshua added Second Tour Campaign works with K3M, a nonprofit based out of Limestone, where veterans are offered a chance to get away at a ranch that features eight to ten beds available for a nice night of sleep.
And the work doesn’t stop for the group in the coming months, Gilreath added. With the highly anticipated “Battle at Bristol” football game between UT and Virginia Tech around the bend, Second Tour Campaign is working together with former Vol greats for a fundraiser.
“I just now got off the phone with former UT quarterback Erik Ainge,” Gilreath said. “We’re working on renting out a venue during the week of the game for people to listen to the stories of adversity and coming out triumphant from it. We’ve got Erik and we’re looking at bringing in former greats like Troy Fleming and Inky Johnson – who you would honestly run through a wall for after you hear him speak.”
The group is also looking for sponsors for the event. A sponsorship would cost $500 but comes was an intriguing reward for anyone looking to assist with the event, Joshua said.
“We were able to purchase 35 bottom-level seats for the game,” he added. “For anybody that contributes $500, they are able to get a ticket, hospitality options at the game, parking and more. And with us being a nonprofit, they can write that expense off … so you’re looking at an opportunity of attending the game for free.”
For more information on Second Tour Campaign, visit their website at secondtour.org or visit the organization’s Facebook page or Twitter: @2ndTourCampaign.