Recon Marine Lawrence Miller of Royal Oak, Mi talks about his transition from the Corps , starting a coffee business and treking 500 miles in Michigan to raise money to support efforts to help fellow veterans. Lawrence talks with host Jim Fausone about the challenges he has faced and the miles he is willing to walk for other veterans.

Our first guest is Melissa Washington

You can see exactly what’s missing. You know you’re the one to fill it. But you’re waiting for the plan, the money, the perfect moment. What if the gap itself is the signal to move?

Melissa Washington didn’t wait. With no business plan and no financial safety net, she built Women Veterans Alliance from a single Sacramento meetup into a global organization reaching thousands — with a giving foundation, a national broadcast event, and a Thrive Causemetics shade named after her. This conversation is for anyone building something that matters without a roadmap telling them how.

Melissa brings the kind of candor that mission-driven leaders rarely hear: talking openly about refinancing her house to keep the mission alive, giving a business award the same year she was personally struggling financially, and why saying “money is not a dirty word” is an act of leadership.

In This Episode You’ll Discover:

✓ Why building without a plan isn’t recklessness — it’s what happens when your Tactical Center is clear ✓ How one woman turned a 2009 layoff into a global organization serving millions ✓ Why talking openly about money is a leadership skill, not an overshare ✓ What the Wilderness terrain looks like for leaders who built something from nothing

Featured Guest: Melissa Washington — Navy veteran, CEO, founder of Women Veterans Alliance and Women Veterans Giving, author, publisher of Women Veterans Magazine, 2025 Military Friendly National Navy Veteran of the Year. Connect: womenveteransalliance.com

Women Veterans Giving Small Business Award — Applications open May 1, 2026. Up to $5,000 cash plus coaching. Founders who served only. womenveteransgiving.org

Women Veterans Engage Conference — May 30, 2026: womenveteransengage.com

Learn More: othersoverself.com | info@missionambition.org

Marine Mary Ann Merritt talks about the upcoming Women Marines Association (WMA) convention in Frankenmuth Michigan in September 2026. WMA has 78 chapters and has been around since 1978. Mary Ann talks about her time in the Marines (active and reserves) back in the 1970s with host Jim Fausone.

Join host Jim Fausone on today's Veterans Radio.

Our first guest is Landon Longrear

Landon Longrear, a Marine out of Texas, shares his firsthand experience in the Battle for Sangin—one of the most intense fights in Afghanistan. He talks openly about what he went through and how his deeply rooted Christian faith shaped the way he faced it all. It’s honest, raw, and pulled straight from his story told in US Marines at the Battle for Sangin.

Our next guest is Jeremy Stalnecker

Jeremy Stalnecker, a Marine from California, takes us through a different kind of journey. Growing up as a pastor’s son, serving in the military, drifting away, and eventually finding his way back to faith—now as a pastor himself. He also talks about starting the Mighty Oaks Foundation and the work they’re doing to help veterans and their families dealing with PTSD.

Mark Salloum, a documentary film maker, took up the project to tell stories of WWII veterans and Metro Detroit's effort in the war effort before the generation passed. "A Salute to our WWII Generation - Let Us Not Forget" tells a great story wrapped in education for the current high school generation. Mark explains to host Jim Fausone the eight year effort to bring this film to fruition and its distribution by PBS and how to purchase the film.

This is one of our favorite and most inspirational programs first heard on 23 October 2010

Tear In The Desert

A Journey into the Heart of the Iraq War with Navy Chaplain Father Ron Moses Camarda

You don’t want to miss this story of Fr. Ron Moses Camarda’s tour of duty in late 2004 as the Chaplain at the Surgical Hospital in Fallujah, Iraq, including the Battle of Fallujah, ministering to over 1500 casualties and 81 KIA including 12 in front of him.

His story of faith is an inspiration to all of us. Father Ron ministered to everyone he came in contact with. Friend or foe, it made no difference to this amazing man of God.

Tune in to hear Fr. Camarda’s stories about the men and women he met and ministered to during his tour in Iraq.

Keep listening after Father Carmada plays Taps for an additional reading from Tear in the Desert and two songs by W.Keith Moore.

US Army Reserve officer Shelly Rood talks about leadership training and coaching in the private sector with her team at Mission Ambition. Shelly talks about her podcast "Hard Core and At Ease" with host Jim Fausone.

Dr. Rebecca Grant & Operation Epic Fury

Dr. Rebecca Grant is a national security analyst based in Washington, DC specializing in defense and aerospace research and national security consulting. She has over 20 years experience working with the United States Air Force, United States Navy, and top aerospace clients. In addition, Dr. Grant has often appeared on television as an expert on national security for Fox News, Fox Business, CNN, and MSNBC and as a series regular on The Smithsonian’s Air Warriors.

Learn more about Dr. Rebecca Grant.

Trinidad Aguirre & VetsForever

Trinidad Aguirre is a U.S. Navy veteran and Co-Founder/CEO of VetsForever, a law group focused on helping veterans secure VA benefits and discharge upgrades. Driven by his own challenges as a 100% P&T disabled veteran, he is dedicated to bringing clarity and support to fellow service members navigating the system. With 20 years of leadership experience across major companies and nonprofits, he is also a member of the 2026 IVMF CEOcircle cohort for veteran entrepreneurs.

Learn more about Trinidad Aguirre & VetsForever.