Veterans are usually very familiar with guns. However, they may not think of them as a way to heal from mental and physical injuries from combat. A nonprofit group in Free Soil, Michigan, is doing just that. Veterans and Sportsman United is a hunting group founded in 2015 that brings former servicemembers together with avid hunters for recreation and relaxation.
The organization provides veterans with a soothing escape when they start to feel confused or stressed by life after service. The group wanted to give veterans a safe place to adjust to their new lives.
"If you're back home from overseas, and you're in the city, it doesn't give you time or a good atmosphere to decompress in," Adam Slinkman, president and chief executive officer of Veterans and Sportsmen United, told Michigan Live. "But if you get out in the field with guys that have the same stories as you, you have a chance to ease your mind a bit. There's a rehabilitation to it."
Veterans and Sportsman United has organized day hikes and week-long hunting trips. Most recently, they have been taking veterans out to Lake Hamlin for duck hunting trips.
The group plans to organize more events and has announced a deer hunting excursion later in the year.