Spartans focus on the spiritual side of resiliency

By Staff Sgt. Richard WrigleyDecember 15, 2014

Spartans focus on the spiritual side of resiliency
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Herman Cheatham (right, back), chaplain of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, talks to Soldiers and their significant others at the Azalea Inn and Gardens, April 10. They are at the Historic Savannah Bed and Breakfast pa... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Spartans focus on the spiritual side of resiliency
2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Herman Cheatham (left), chaplain of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, talks to Sgt. Alfonzo Johnson, targeting noncommissioned officer for the 2nd ABCT at the Azalea Inn and Gardens, April 10. They are at the Historic S... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT STEWART, Ga. - Two Soldiers and their spouses, from the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Division "Spartans," 3rd Infantry Division, spent a night and a day at the Azalea Inn and Gardens, a historic Savannah bed and breakfast inn, April 10.

For the last few years, many in the Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield area have known the inn as a mainstay in generosity and hospitality as it has opened its doors and donated two rooms to Purple Heart Recipients every second Thursday of the month, and has also donated all 10 of its rooms on Veterans Day every year.

Many have heard this story already, and it deserves to be told over and over again, simply for the extreme amount of good the inns owners do for the local military and veteran community, enough cannot be said.

Despite this, one aspect of the retreat that happens every month, but is often over looked because of the wonderful story of generosity and sacrifice that is so readily available, is the story of the Fort Stewart chaplains and their role in the event.

Time-wise, their role is a small one. The chaplains only meet with the participating Soldiers and their significant others for an hour or less, and after that the participants are left in the ever capable hands of the staff at the Azalea Inn. However, the work the chaplains do in that hour is important none the less.

Maj. Herman Cheatham, chaplain for the 2nd ABCT, considers this time important and precious. He uses it as a time to address Spiritual Resiliency.

"I teach a small class and we talk in general about spiritual resiliency and what that means," Cheatham said. "After that, I ask them some pretty direct questions, but not for the purpose of getting answers then and there, but to give them something to reflect on."

Just as Soldiers learn in their quarterly Master Resiliency Training, being resilient means having the ability to bounce back from life's unexpected difficulties rather than buckling under the pressure caused by life's tough experiences.

Spiritual resiliency is very similar, and the focus for Cheatham's small classes is to self-assess and look at where the Soldier was spiritually before deployment, and determine if the Soldier is still there or in a better or worse state spiritually after their experiences and injuries.

"Only the individual in question can decide if their spiritual situation is a good or bad one, and if they have bounced back from their adversities," said Cheatham. "I just give them something to think about, because I'm not trying to pull something out of a person they aren't ready to deal with."

One of the participants in the retreat this week, Sgt. Alfonzo Johnson, the targeting noncommissioned officer for the 2nd ABCT, has found that despite his experiences, or actually because of them, he has grown spiritually.

"It brought me closer to the Lord. My spirituality grew, and it has allowed me to value life more now than it did before," said Johnson of his spirituality after experiencing extreme and extensive injuries while in combat.

"As I see it, [the Lord] spared my life to do more things, what work he had planned for me," Johnson further iterated.

While Johnson's spiritual growth was positively affected by his experiences, Cheatham explained that for many other Wounded Warriors, that is not the case.

He explained that many deal with varying degrees of guilt for various reasons, and that it can be difficult for them to get to a place spiritually that they are happy with after dealing with traumatic experiences in combat.

"I encourage them not to feel guilty if Soldiers are not in a place that they feel they should be spiritually," said Cheatham. "I simply teach that the key thing is striving to get to that place."

The chaplain also explained that it is difficult to ensure that everyone gets the tools they need to become spiritually resilient, simply due to the broad expanse of individual spirituality.

"We have a concrete concept of what constitutes physical and mental resiliency, but so many people define their spirituality differently that it can be difficult to develop a training program around it," Cheatham explained.

Despite this, the chaplain is not trying to build the Ark in a day when it comes to these small classes before the retreat, but to get the participants minds moving in a good direction.

"It's just an opportunity for couples to focus, rest and meditate on the concept of spiritual resiliency, and what spirituality means to them," Cheatham said.

In the end, the chaplain's message was just about healthy living, and getting the mind, body and spirit in a good place.

"I encourage everyone to do the best they can to be spiritually resilient because that, in my opinion, is the hub that drives physical and mental resiliency."

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