VeteranCrowd Spotlight – Jon Macaskill – Navy SEAL on Veteran’s Path

Jon Macaskill – Navy SEAL on Veteran’s PATH

Some dates are seared into one’s memory. 

For Jon Macaskill, that date is June 28, 2005.

Jon Macaskill is a recently retired US Navy Seal, an officer, graduate of the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. Jon is currently the Deputy Executive Director and Podcast host for Veteran’s Path. Veteran’s PATH enables returning veterans to rediscover meaning, purpose, and joy in their lives through mindfulness, meditation, and a safe community. 

Jon stepped into the Spotlight in this VeteranCrowd podcast episode.

Operation Red Wings

Jon Macaskill was serving in the Teams in Afghanistan in June of 2005 when Operation Red Wings was conceived and under way. June 28, 2005 turned out to be the one of the darkest days in the history of the Navy SEAL teams.

Jon Macaskill, CDR USN

Operation Red Wings, informally referred to as the Battle of Abbas Ghar was a combined / joint military operation during the War in Afghanistan in the Pech District of Afghanistan’s Kunar Province, on the slopes of a mountain named Sawtalo Sar.

As we spoke on this podcast, I recognized the immense impact this event had upon Jon – it was telegraphed in his appearance. 

Jon shared with me the pain of this event, his close ties to the SEALs lost that day, and the survivor guilt that he and many others carried home. He also shared his journey to recovery, and the discoveries he made along that way.

Veteran’s Path

Now recently retired, Jon is relocating with his young family to Colorado Springs, and launching a new drive for veterans to help them recover through techniques that helped him – including meditation and mindfulness. 

Rather than pursue some of the “shiny things’ offered transitioning special operations veterans, Jon sought to find his passion. It  became clear to Jon he must help others as he had been helped himself. Jon decided to found a non-profit to teach these things, but luckily one already existed

As he searched, Jon found Veteran’ PATH, a non-profit founded by two women in Berkeley, CA in 2008. Originally called “Honoring the Path of the Warrior,” this company had been introducing veterans to the life-changing and life-saving benefits of mindfulness and mediation.

Jon walked me through the impact on his life and:

    – Physiological changes to the brain

    – How 100,000 years of evolution is hard to change, but needs to

    – How military training for stress develops one way and meditation another

    – How 200,000 transitioning veterans need this training every year to find their path and their “new tribe”

Veteran’s Path is kicking off a new program, supported by social media and delivered online this week in concert with eMindful. Accelerated by the Corona Virus, these online programs augment many of the services Veteran’s PATH provided face to face in the past.

Jon Macaskill and Veteran’s PATH

You can learn more about Jon and Veteran’s PATH at the links provided below.

Website: Veteranspath.org

Podcast:  Veteran’s PATH on all major podcast platforms. 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPvJnrurdnXxdlaE7v3uoMA 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veteranspath/ 

Facebook: https://facebook.com/veteranspath 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/veteran’s-path 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/veteranspath

 

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