As I reflect back on the previous four years since Erik and
I committed to initiating and developing what would later go on to become the
Soldiers to Summits program, I am profoundly moved to consider the dozens of
amazing warriors I have been honored to share a rope with on each of our expeditions.
One of the great gifts of starting this program has been the personal degree of
learning I have been exposed to. I had
very little understanding back then how transformational the S2S program would
be for me on a very profound level.
Watching these wounded warriors come together as a unit,
congeal as a team, prepare for a mission and deal with adversity has taught me
more than I can easily convey. I have seen strength and I have seen raw pain. I
have learned what it means to stand up in the face of adversity…and in some
cases, in spite of it.
Now four years later, as I accept the role as expedition leader
again for an S2S project, I am honored to be inextricably connected to a new
group of veterans that have dedicated themselves to roping up as a team,
committed to the healing process and are fired up to embrace the bounty that
the alpine environment provides us.
I am grateful to all the men and women that rope up with us
in the mountains. I am grateful to them for their sacrifice. And I am grateful
to them for teaching all of us what it means to be a warrior.
Jeff Evans PA-C
Expedition Leader - Mission: Mt Whitney
