New veterans organization being created in Mon Valley

By TAYLOR BROWN, Senior Reporter

Soldiers Under Maintenance will give former military members a forum to talk openly about their experiences.

To win a war, it takes boots on the ground.

But for many veterans, the experiences they had while serving their country are not easy to talk about.

Opening up requires vulnerability and trust — no matter where they were stationed, what branch they served with or the rank they held.

For two Mon Valley army veterans, Troy Reinke of Charleroi and Corre Griffith of McKeesport, their stories as soldiers are different, but their hearts are one and the same.

Together, their boots are on the ground in the Mon Valley, and they are ready to show up for their brothers and sisters who face similar struggles and wage a war within themselves.

Though they come from different backgrounds and experiences, a happy accident created a bond between them that led to the creation of S.U.M – Soldiers Under Maintenance.

The nonprofit veterans support group that they created will meet for the first time at 6 p.m. Wednesday at City Reach Church in Charleroi.

Personal stories can be hard to tell, no matter the circumstance.

Particularly for veterans, it takes a lot of courage, trust and vulnerability to feel comfortable enough to bear their souls to someone who may not understand.

When Reinke and Griffith met about two years ago, they were both struggling.

They had known each other in passing, but after sitting down oneon- one, conversations naturally started to flow and they found commonality in their struggles.

Through an unexpected friendship, they both found a safe space to share — without restriction or judgment and with someone who truly “got” it.

Like many veterans, they found that coming home can be chaotic.

“The bonds you build, that’s the biggest thing,” Griffith said. “It was strict, it was tough, but it was like a family. We argued, we got into fights with each other that sometimes turned into fist fights, but we were always there patting each other on the back. If one of us fell, we all fell.

“So that alone is I think something a lot of vets miss when they get out and come back to civilization. Because, honestly, it’s (civilization) chaos out here. It really is and I recognized it, and then I met Troy.”

Veterans like Reinke and Griffith learned the hard way that it can be particularly difficult to open up.

They said people can often claim to “understand” without having relatable experiences, which can be frustrating.

Reinke and Griffith didn’t have to VETERANS •A2

“We are just like everybody else, we have our issues, but when it comes to vets, everyone wants to use kids’ gloves. That’s not what we want, and it’s not what we need. We want real, in our face. We want connections.”

CORRE GRIFFITH jump over that hurdle after they found each other.

They talked to each other without judgment or stigma – and they quickly discovered that they had found another person who understood the struggles, loss and personal growth earned by serving their country.

Griffith tried to use the resources available to him, but there wasn’t a local group to provide the type of support he was looking for.

“This started in Troy’s kitchen, and we just started talking, and I told him about my stuff and he told me about his, and we didn’t have anyone else, and once we found each other and got this idea, we knew we needed to take it to everybody,” Griffith said. “At the time, I was having a severe breakdown, and I was looking for a place local, like a group. The closest one that I was told was Greensburg, and then the other closest one was Pittsburgh, and the other closest one was Morgantown. I did not want to travel an hour to sit there for an hour, and possibly not be able to talk about my issue.

“I have a therapist, I can talk to my therapist, but even she doesn’t understand a lot of the stuff. I might not have a degree, but I know what my military mind says. He (Troy) knows what the military mind says. Civilians don’t, even if they want to.”

Griffith said the support offered through the VA leaves a lot to be desired.

“We can go to the VA, but they either want to give us pills or pass us on to somebody else,” he said. “Even those therapists a lot of the time, half of them might have been in the service, but they sure don’t act like it.”

Griffith said he realized there needs to be a space with people who understand his struggles and could share their own, and not have to think about what they say or how they say it.

“I didn’t want to have to sit there and think what would happen if I said what was on my mind truthfully,” Griffith said. “I didn’t want to wonder if being honest would affect the treatment I was getting.”

Reinke had one experience where he sat down with a therapist who was also a veteran. After sharing, he was told to leave.

“We don’t think that’s right, and we know it’s not the first time it has happened,” Griffith said. “Our entire goal with this is to get rid of the stigma that vets have amongst their families, their friends and their community.

The group will not only be a safe space for veterans to openly share and connect, but also a way for them to better manage their problems and talk about how they can affect the people around them.

“When I have a panic attack, I can take it out on everyone around me, and I know that’s my fault, but in my mind, I’m thinking that it’s everybody around me causing it,” Griffith said. “I might be right or I might be wrong, but either way that’s how I am feeling and people have a hard time understanding that. For me, if I am having an episode, I don’t want people to back away, but I also don’t want them to slap me in the face. It’s just hard to find the type of support we need.”

“We don’t want people to handle us with kids’ gloves, but we also don’t want people to think they know better,” Reinke said.

With many of the problems they face, they know their service is only a small part of it. But they believe other veterans are in the same boat.

“I would love for this thing to blow up and have all of these veterans together, having a good time, being themselves, relaxing and finding a place to speak freely without repercussions,” Griffith said. “Without judgment. A lot of veterans organizations are groups run like a business, but we want this to be a family, and to feel like they are actually part of something.”

S.U.M. is bigger than each of them.

“Soldiers Under Maintenance is not just for me to help me, or Corre to help Corre,” Reinke said. “It’s about helping the community. I have put myself in survival mode to make it this far, but I don’t want to be in survival mode anymore. I want to not be scared to live. That’s why I have Corre and that’s why I have this, and it’s why what we’re trying to do is important.”

“It might sound cliche, but it’s true, if we can help one person, that’s it, then I already feel better,” Griffith said.

Elizabeth “Beth” Elliott, S.U.M. secretary, is a civilian who comes from a big military family.

She’s neighbors with Reinke and stepped in to help because she had a background in administrative work.

Elliot’s family has deep military roots, and she knows first hand how important it is to find help and support when dealing with mental health.

“A lot of my family members, myself included, have struggled with mental health,” she said. “I have been to meetings and just hearing stories about how many people are trying to get help, some of them did successfully, but there are so many roadblocks out there.

“I know there’s not a magic pill or a magic anything, and we have to put in the work too, but it’s already a difficult situation, and acquiring quality, consistent help is exceedingly difficult. So if I can participate in leading people to that help, whether it be a veteran, or later down the road a civilian, I’m absolutely dedicated to making that happen.”

Elliot believes in the group’s purpose.

“The American Legion, VFW and other veteran-focused organizations serve the veteran community as well, but they do not offer the kind of support and mental, spiritual, and emotional help that S.U.M. wants to provide,” Elliot said. “You would think there would be countless organizations that already do (this), but, surprisingly, the closest support group to Charleroi, where we are located, is in Greensburg.

“Veterans certainly live and work in the Mon Valley, so we see the potential to serve the community in an important way.”

John DiEugenio of CityReach Church, who serves as the spiritual and civilian liaison for S.U.M., comes from a military family and said he recognizes the struggles of veterans.

“Seeing the aftermath for veterans who have served and feeling that we need to do something for them, I had been talking with Troy and met Corre, and they mentioned having it here at the church, and I knew immediately it was something we wanted to be part of,” DiEugenio said. “To offer a space to come and open up and share. Somewhere for them to get the help that they need and realize they are not alone.

“As a church, our vision and goal is to help the community. And this is part of our community, a part that doesn’t get the help or support it needs, and for us to play a small part in that is a big thing for us.”

The dream for S.U.M is big, too. The group hopes to expand services to include support for youths and civilians through education, outreach and events.

“We want to bring as much peace as we can, and we don’t feel like that mission is going to be completed until we are able to look around and say these are my brothers and sisters,” Griffith said. “For us, there is no black, white, yellow, red, orange, pink, purple or polka dots. There’s no color in the service, it’s all green and we are going to stick by that.”

S.U.M is ready to officially launch this week.

The organizers say veterans deserve peace, whether it be mentally, physically, spiritually or emotionally. They are encouraged to come “get S.U.M” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, but help and support will go beyond scheduled meetings.

“We want them to come to us, but it’s not just meetings, we want to be available all of the time, whenever they need us, no matter what,” Griffith said. “We want them to know, even if it is an emergency, they have faith that we are there, no matter what. Our eyes are on them, our hands are reaching out, our hearts are open and our souls are going to fight, just like every soldier in the battlefield. We don’t know you, but you better believe that we’re going to pick up that rifle and fight for you.”

“In real war, no war is won without boots on the ground, and guess what? We have boots on the ground. We’re the boots on the ground.”

“We’re ready to stand like an Atlas and hold you up, not (just) because we want to, but because we have to.”

In addition to Reinke and Griffith, Maxwell Antonucci serves on the S.U.M board of directors, which will eventually have five members.

Elliot is in the process of finalizing the group’s 501(c)(3) status.

For more information, or to get involved, find S.U.M. on Facebook.

Veterans in need of help or support can reach out to organizers directly by calling Reinke at 724-243-9429 or Griffith at 724-243-0269.