GWINN, Mich. (WLUC) – Veterans met in Gwinn to take dogs out hunting Sunday morning.
It was the second annual Aspen Thunder Veterans Hunt. Until they got tired of it, 12 veterans hunted grouse in woods near Rock.
The event isn’t just about hunting. It’s about empowering themselves.
“Camaraderie,” Veteran Jason Stavely said. “Get together. That’s the one thing I miss about the service is the camaraderie. I can talk, and people can understand where I’m coming from, or they can talk to me, and I can understand where they’re coming from.”
Stavely is from Saginaw, and it was his first year participating in the hunt. He says events like these help veterans with their mental health.
“It means the world to me,” Stavely said. “I wouldn’t be alive, so the vet groups have saved my life.”
Event Organizer Mark Schlicht says the hunt is his way of giving back to veterans. He and Aspen Thicket Grouse Dogs also provided dogs to help find grouse.
“We all hear the statistics, right?” Schlicht said. “So, the intent here is just to give them an opportunity to experience the tools that we use to reduce our stresses.”
According to the 2023 National Veteran Suicide Prevention report, about 17 veterans die by suicide every day.
Schlicht says grouse hunting offers an opportunity to forget everything.
“You go out there, you can be as physical as you want to be,” Schlicht said. “You can either walk a trail nice and easy, or you can get down deep and dark in the woods and be as physical as you want to be.”
He hopes even more veterans join next year’s hunt.
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