If you're looking for a way to get outside while also improving your whole self, gardening may be the hobby for you.

You know volunteering has a positive influence (make friends, build connections, gain experiences, etc.), but did you know that it can actually assist your health?

There are always ways to give back to others around you, even including the presents you buy. Here are some ideas for Father’s Day gifts that give back.

The Service to the Armed Forces Branch of the American Red Cross to fill MEPS volunteer positions in Butte. Attached is a flyer with more information. For the MEPS Site position. They are looking for people with weekday availability that can be on site at MEPS when new recruits and their families are present.

Enjoy the beauty of Western Montana with the Happy, Healthy Hikers! Every hike will leave you with....

With the help of a bicycle, we can take better care of the environment, our physical bodies and even spend time together. So how can you mark this momentous occasion?

The Post 9/11 GI Bill is an education benefit program for individuals who served on active duty after September 10, 2011. Check out your opportunities ~

Let's Get Outside! All programs open to Service Members & Veterans with a disability from any era.

Many Veterans, with a service connected disability rating, are entering Federal parks for free with the Lifetime National Parks Access Pass from the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Good for entry into 400+ National Parks and over 2,000 recreation sites across the country, the Lifetime Access Pass is another way a grateful nation says thank you for the service and sacrifices of Veterans with disabilities.

The Access Pass admits disabled Veterans and any passengers in their vehicle (non-commercial) at per-vehicle fee areas; and, the pass owner plus three additional adults where per-person fees are charged. In addition to free entry at participating parks, the Access Pass includes discounts on expanded amenity fees; such as camping, swimming, boat launching and guided tours..
Veterans who have a VA disability rating, (10 percent or higher) are eligible for the Lifetime Access Pass—with two ways to apply.
First, disabled Veterans can apply in person at a participating federal recreation site. Simply present photo identification (Drivers license, State ID, Passport) and documentation proving a permanent disability (VA awards letter, VA ID with service connected annotation, VA summary of benefits, or receipt of Social Security disability income). That’s It. The Pass is free and issued at the time of entry.
Second, if applying by mail, send a completed packet and $10 processing fee to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The packet should include:
• The Access Pass application form
• Proof of residency
• VA disability award letter, VA summary of benefits, or proof of SSDI income
Pass delivery expected 10-12 weeks after receipt of application.
Make sure to have photo ID available when using your Lifetime Access Pass and enjoy the majestic scenery and abundant recreational opportunities our National Parks provide.

Why Mental Health First Aid? Hope you can join us....

Memorial Day means much more than time off from work and hosting a barbecue, so if you want to get involved this weekend, check out these great ways to give back.

No matter how old you are, what your musical taste is or whether or not you can read a note, there's never a wrong time to learn how to play an instrument.

Scholarships for Livestock and Poultry Farmers
As funding allows, FACT will award scholarships of up to $400 for livestock and poultry farmers to attend conferences and training events to learn humane animal management practices. FACT is currently only accepting applications for scholarships to conferences or events that are proposed by individual farmers on their application.
Carolina Meat Conference (October 2019 - Not yet accepting applications)
CFSA Sustainable Agriculture Conference (November 2019 - Not yet accepting applications)
Other conferences - If you would like to attend a conference or event that is not listed above, please suggest it on your application. FACT staff members will review proposed conferences on a case by case basis and approve those deemed eligible.

Mental Health Month
Each year millions of Americans face the reality of living with a mental illness. During May, NAMI and the rest of the country are raising awareness of mental health. Each year we fight stigma, provide support, educate the public and advocate for policies that support people with mental illness and their families.
WhyCare
The WhyCare? campaign is an opportunity to share the importance of care in our relationships to others, in mental health treatment and services and in support and education to millions of people, families, caregivers and loved ones affected by mental illness. Demonstrating how and why we care brings more to awareness by showing our actions and connections to others. Care has the power to make a life-changing impact on those affected by mental health conditions.

MOSAICS (Maximizing OVC’s Survivor Assistance in Court Settings) is a training and technical assistance (TTA) project to assist courts in implementing trauma-responsive policies to:
Identify survivors of human trafficking who are facing criminal charges.
Respond to the needs of survivors facing charges with a range of outcomes in their cases and a continuum of social service referrals.
Reduce the infliction of harm on survivors facing criminal charges in court proceedings.
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is generally understood in two categories: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. Under federal law, sex trafficking is defined as the recruitment, harboring, transportation, patronizing, or soliciting of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act induced by force, fraud, or coercion. Inducing any person under the age of eighteen to engage in a commercial sex act is also sex trafficking.
Labor trafficking is the recruitment, harboring, provision, or transportation of a person for labor or services, using force, fraud, or coercion, for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.
Survivors of human trafficking can be any race, gender, age, class, religion, or culture.
Barriers to Helping Survivors
A major barrier to reaching and providing recovery services to survivors of human trafficking is that trafficking survivors are often arrested and prosecuted for crimes related to their trafficking. When survivors enter the legal system facing criminal charges, they often go unrecognized as victims. The court is sometimes the last to learn – or never learns – that an accused person has been coerced into criminality by a trafficker and/or is struggling with the traumatic effects of trafficking. While courts have a duty to hold offenders accountable, they must also have systems in place to ensure that they are not unduly punishing survivors. In addition, courts must have mechanisms to connect survivors to the support and assistance they want and need.
MOSAICS training will better position courts to identify, intervene, and interrupt cycles of re-victimization of survivors that, too often, play out in court settings.

When Los Angeles City Leader Xavier Clarke was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps in 2009, he took with him a very unique passion. A passion that he has since transformed into his own small business, Yosa Matcha. Yosa, meaning great quality and goodness, is the result of Xavier’s time stationed in Japan combined with some business prowess taken from his military background.
It was during his time stationed in Okinawa that he became fascinated with the health benefits and history surrounding matcha. Originally given to samurais before battle as a way to help cultivate focus and calmness, Xavier found himself identifying with the idea of becoming a mindful warrior. He began to use matcha as a way to help himself remain calm, energized and laser-focused during grueling workouts or long missions. It wasn’t until he returned home that he noticed the absence of high-quality, Japanese matcha available to American consumers. Recognizing this opportunity, Xavier called on his military background to help him launch Yosa. He began with learning objectives — through research he could discover support systems that would help him grow his veteran-owned business. Then he looked at enabling objectives — which programs did he quality for and what did the application process look like. Finally, he tackled his executable items and launched Yosa.
One specific resource that Xavier found during his research was the We Work Veterans in Residence program powered Bunker Labs. Xavier points to the ambitious network of other veteran entrepreneurs as well as the access to WeWork locations across the region as key to helping him support Yosa. He has also been able to sample his newest product, nitro cold brew matcha, with key demographics by placing it in multiple WeWork locations around Los Angeles.That isn’t to say that everything from the Marines has translated perfectly into the entrepreneurial world. One major difference Xavier noticed is the contrast between the very regimented and structured environment of the military to the free-for-all of the consumer marketplace. Navigating that transition was a soul-searching period not just for Xavier, but for Yosa. It was during that time he began to define the culture of his company, one that has been built on selling the highest quality matcha in the world.

May is National Drug Court Month, and this year marks thirty years of treatment courts in the United States. The first drug court was created in 1989 in Miami-Dade County, Florida. During the past three decades the number of drug courts has exceeded 4,000.

Treatment courts are designed with people in mind, essentially putting treatment and rehabilitation ahead of punishment. Instead of incarceration, the programs offer people with drug offenses the opportunity to enter court supervised, long-term treatment.

As public support for justice reform builds, so too does the recognition that a substance use disorder is a health issue and should be treated as such. The recent increase in opioid-related overdose deaths, with 130 Americans dying every day, changed the conversation about both substance use disorders and about treatment.

In 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services declared the opioid crisis a national public health emergency. To combat the crisis, the federal government called for improving access to treatment and recovery services.
Treatment courts are a part of the solution. They help to save lives; reduce drug use, crime, and recidivism; save money; and make families and communities safer. This #DrugCourtMonth we celebrate those who worked hard to turn their lives around and the professionals who support them.

So, do you want to embrace social networking to have a positive influence on the world? Here are some ideas for how to use social media to make a difference.

USDA National Organic Program has launched an online Organic Integrity Learning Center that provides free training for organic professionals. Initial course offerings include the following: Introduction to the USDA Organic System; Sound and Sensible Organic Certification; Fundamentals of Inspection; Compliance and Enforcement: Adverse Actions, Appeals, and Reinstatements; and Import Oversight Essentials. Future courses will include Dairy Compliance, Traceability Techniques, Advanced Inspections, Materials Reviews, Certification Administration, and Sampling and Testing. Each training lesson includes assessments to track learning progress.

REBOOT Combat Recovery Montana
Come celebrate the completion of another REBOOT course on May 20 at 6:30 pm.
The celcbration will be at the The Well Church at 1800 Highland Drive in Helena Montana.
To RSVP, send an e-mail to buddy@reboot-mt.com or TEXT 406-438-6319.

If you’re a veteran of the US Military this program is for you.
Bridger Creek Golf Course is proud to be one of two courses in the PGA Rocky Mountain section to host the PGA HOPE program. This introduction to golf program is for all veterans, including disabled veterans, with the aim of bringing veterans together to enjoy the outdoors, camaraderie with fellow veterans and the great game of golf. Absolutely no prior golf experience is necessary and veterans who do golf can sharpen their skills in this program.
Sessions are taught by experienced PGA professionals. Golf clubs, training aids, range balls and course access are all included. Specialized equipment for disabled veterans is also available and all the programs are free of charge. If you’re a veteran or know of a veteran who would benefit for some outdoor time learning to play golf just call the pro shop at 586-2333. Spaces are limited and veterans who did not participate in last fall’s HOPE program will have first priority.
The 2019 Program runs for five weeks starting on Wednesday, May 15th. The series will be from 10am until noon on May 15th, 22nd, and 29th and June 5th and 12th.
Just call the pro shop to sign up for this 5 week program.
Sincerely, Mark Holiday, PGA Director of Golf

The NAMI Blog is our way of getting tips, research, information and hope to our followers. Every month features a different theme.
For the month of April, we are featuring "Therapy." Coming up in May is the theme: "Mental Illness in Pop Culture."
In case you missed it, March was “Stories of Discrimination.” Here are some of the pieces we featured:
• That Time in The Psych Ward
• My Brother is Not a Threat, He Has Schizophrenia
• When Discrimination Starts in Elementary School
Thank you for your help in spreading the word about the NAMI Blog!

June 3
USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is accepting applications for Community Food Projects (CFP) and Planning Projects. The program supports the development of CFPs with a one-time infusion of federal dollars to make such projects self-sustaining. The purpose of a Planning Project (PP) is to complete a plan toward the improvement of community food security in keeping with the primary goals of this program. Examples of CFP Projects include, but are not limited to, community gardens with market stands, value chain projects, food hubs, farmers markets, farm-to-institutions projects, and marketing and consumer cooperatives. Examples of PPs include, but are not limited to, community food assessments’ coordination of collaboration development plan, GIS analysis, food sovereignty study, and farm-to-institution exploration. All projects must involve low-income participants. Approximately $4.8 million is available. No single CFP award will exceed $125,000 in any single year or $400,000 over four years. No single PP award will exceed $35,000 for the total project period.
Applications are due by June 3, 2019.

What is new in your neck of the woods? For me, everything has changed. Ok not really but we do have Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University classes available for FREE to veterans and their spouses/significant others. I will be all over the State of Montana teaching classes. What does that mean for you? It means if you are interested please contact me so I can get you on the list to know where I should go for my next class. I have completed classes in Billings and Missoula, and am scheduled to be in Havre teaching Dave Ramsey, May 20-22. I also recently attended the Veteran Suicide Awareness and Prevention in Missoula and will be attending a resource fair in Helena on August 24th.

STACIE GRANDPRE | (406) 209-8609 | sgrandpre@vubmt.com