“Part of resiliency, in addition to being able to bounce back or to recover, is to also be able to cope and navigate your way around problems when they are small enough to be managed,” said Aljournal Franklin, moderator for a speakers panel during Fort Jackson’s Resiliency Stand-To held Oct. 3.
The installation held the two-day Stand-To Oct. 3-4 to expose Soldiers, Department of the Army Civilians and others on post to on- and off-post agencies that can help increase their ability to bounce back during a crisis.
“In most units when something bad happens, we do a stand down and look at everything we did wrong and how we could prevent it,” said Post Command Sgt. Maj. Erick Ochs while opening the Stand-To at the Drill Sergeant Timothy Kay Soldier Performance Readiness Center. “We wanted to get ahead of that by providing resources to those who need it before an incident happens. You know, it’s about prevention, but with the blessing of (Holistic Health and Fitness), it’s about getting better physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally.”
The five domains of H2F are physical, spiritual, mental, sleep and nutrition.
Ochs called on the community to look out for each other especially those who couldn’t make it to the Stand-To.
“So please help that person,” he charged the community. “You know your people far better than I ever will.”
Ochs added resiliency isn’t just targeted at drill sergeants, but “our civilian employees here, our contractors, our Family members, all these resources are available to anybody that can get through the gates.”
After Ochs spoke, attendees joined a small group circuit that included pullups, hand-release pushups, two 20-lbs dumbbell carry and cardio machines.
“Personally, it is important to me because I want the Fort Jackson community to know there is a resource to help them in every situation they’re facing,” said Theresita Moses, Army Substance Abuse Program manager and Stand-To lead planner. “They do not have to go through anything alone. As a community we can help make each other stronger.”
For 1st Sgt. Nickolas Reed with the 193rd Infantry Brigade the workout was a good start to the day.
“All the events today are good things to help cadre, drill sergeants (know of the events) around post which really opens your eyes,” Reed said.
The workout session was followed later Oct. 3 with the speaker’s panel Franklin moderated.
The panel was comprised of
Breanna Kay - Gold Star widow of drill sergeant Kay
Keith Allen – U.S. Army Master Resilience School director
Kimberly Richardson – chief executive officer, Widows of Opportunity, South Carolina
Mark Casper – chief executive officer, Tech 4 Troops
Maj. Erin Stone – Non Physical Domain Lead, Holistic Health and Fitness, Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Each panel member spoke about their experiences with resiliency and how they or their agencies helped them bounce back.
Kay said resiliency first took a role in her life in July 2021 when her then boyfriend was diagnosed with cancer for a second time.
“At that point my whole world was turned upside down,” she said. “We were actually dating at that time. So, it was at that point I had to make a decision do we move forward and get married, or do I stay behind and just leave this relationship. So that is probably the first point where resiliency came into my life.”
She said they made the decision during his battle that he was going to go down fighting – a battle he fought tooth and nail. The SPRC was named after him because doctors said he wouldn’t have made it as far as he did without his physical regimen.
Kay said the physical regimen her late husband went through while fighting cancer “from my experience it can be the difference between life and death. It gave me an extra 14 months based on the physical capacity he maintained.”
She found there were people at Fort Jackson who would help support her.
Her story was one of the many shared at the panel. For more information and to watch the panel in its entirety visit: https://www.facebook.com/USArmyGarrisonFortJackson/videos/1968655593645172.
The Stand-To ended Oct. 4 with classes aimed at helping individuals build resiliency. They were “Mindfulness and Meditation” provided by the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant Academy; a finance class from Army Community Service financial specialists; bingo with SHARP and MEO office; a unit cohesion class; and a nutrition class.
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