VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Trails of Purpose, a Chesapeake-based nonprofit that makes use of horses to assist army members, is making ready to increase its companies to a brand new facility to accommodate a growing need for mental health resources.

Roughly 30 volunteers gathered not too long ago at One Red Maple Farm to assist clear the property. Trails of Purpose started leasing elements of the 38-acre Pungo farm in early May and goes via the town’s conditional use allow course of to open the property to army members and their households looking for psychological well being counseling.

Located within the coronary heart of one of many nation’s most densely populated army communities, co-founder Kayla Arestivo stated increasing companies was mandatory.

“Just look at the news,” stated Arestivo, a licensed psychological well being counselor and army partner. “Military mental health — Department of Defense mental health — is overrun right now. It is not well supported or billeted.”

Trails of Purpose offers therapeutic take care of service members struggling psychological hardships, utilizing horses for assisted psychotherapy and psychological well being schooling. The varied companies, which largely contain dealing with the horses on foot, are supposed to assist present and former army members and their households overcome the trauma, transition and trials from army service.

“We’ve doubled our service members every year since we’ve been in existence,” Arestivo stated. “I have had chiefs call me and say, ‘Nobody’s picking up the phone, Portsmouth is overrun and I have got this kid.’ And they literally drive the sailor out to us. That is the need.”

Ricky Bledsoe, a Trails of Purpose board member and retired Navy particular warfare officer, bought the property from Lynnette Bukowski, the widow of a veteran Navy SEAL. Bukowski, who owned the farm for almost 10 years, had turned it right into a retreat for veterans coming back from fight.

“The whole premise behind buying the place was to continue the mission Lynn started,” stated Bledsoe, who had volunteered with Bukowski.

Bledsoe retired as a chief warrant officer 3 in 2021 following a 30-year naval profession.

“I noticed there was a lack of attention to people’s well being — especially for their mental health. It was always, ‘Go, go, go’ and not about the individual,” Bledsoe stated.

Bledsoe, Arestivo and Trails of Purpose volunteers labored for 3 hours, guaranteeing the property shall be out there to army members and their households to “rest and refit.” Volunteers cleared overgrown vegetation and cleaned up animal pens, a bunk home and a barn.

“If you need a place just get out of the city on the weekends, we have that. If you want to just get out and be amongst nature with horses, without horses, or just sit over there and have lunch and let your kids play,” Bledsoe stated. “It is somewhere to totally relax, for you to just withdraw from the overwhelming stuff of reality for a little bit.”

Trails of Purpose sees about 100 army members, veterans and their households per week in particular person, partner, household or group remedy classes.

“These are people who are built for community,” Arestivo stated. “A lot of military members don’t typically have friends outside the military because they have built-in friends in the military. But when you leave the military, you don’t have that anymore. When you come out to us, now you do.

“Now, every Saturday you can show up to groups and you can trust that somebody is going to be there checking in on you. You have a place where you belong.”

In working with One Red Maple Farm, the nonprofit will have the ability to facilitate further teams, operating in tandem with the Chesapeake location. It employed three further licensed skilled counselors and is leasing seven new horses.

Opening this system at a second location has additionally expanded Arestivo’s targets.

“I would love for people to understand the value in civilian counselors for the military,” she stated. “Maybe we don’t need to report everything back to TRICARE. Maybe people can just go and talk about what’s going on with them and it doesn’t have to be reported to the command.”

Participating in Trails of Purpose is free and isn’t reported to commanding officers or army medical health insurance suppliers. A service member’s participation will solely be reported if licensed skilled counselors deem that particular person a risk to themself or others.

Arestivo’s short-term aim is to see the waitlist dwindle. It is presently 4 weeks.

“But right now, if I remove three from the waitlist, three more replace them,” Arestivo stated.