Starting a new Chapter

A few weeks ago, My husband came home in the middle of the day completely devastated after being fired from his 8 year position with the Home Depot. A company that he had worked for while retiring from his 20 years of service in the Army and a company that he had devoted the past 8 years to tirelessly.
Where do we go from here? Back to what he knows and loves. Back to what defines him as a man, he is first and foremost a soldier and a leader.
So, again, where do we go from here? With little resources and a lot of passion we have already spent months developing the idea for a Military Scenario Paintball facility, now, we realize that the dream must be put into action. We must adapt, re-group and implement a plan. Adrenaline Junkie Paintball is born.
If you build it they will come.
Our plans for a grand field for acting out military scenarios with a downed helicopter, a repel tower, a bridge too far and a shoot house, halt. A dedicated field for our wounded soldiers and those that need additional specialized field clearance gets put off for a bit. At this point we don't even have a building to work out of. What we do have is 23 acres of raw woods, a small loan from my brother for the paintball guns and several dedicated friends who believe in what we want to do.
Fourth of July Launch!
After a week of borrowing equipment to clear paths, 6 bee stings, 5 ticks and several unintended equipment repairs, although it is not our original dream, the field is passable and playable. We worked tirelessly putting together our mission plans, developing the scenario and shopping the surplus stores for inexpensive props. We post flyers, we developed a website, we speak to anyone who will listen - Fourth of July is not the best day to launch, we were told. Well, we know it as well but, it had so much significance on so many levels. We needed a start date to commit to, we needed to feel our independence and at 11:00am we were out at the field ready to go!
Although it was not the made house we had hoped for, our few players trickled in. Our objective was to provide them with an experience that would engage them in a objective driven, combative mission. We wanted to immerse them in a situation where they had to rely on each other, skills, tactic, planning and execution. My dad, a Vietnam Vet acted as a referee and his opinion of what we had done was of the utmost importance to us.
After more than an hour in the woods, I watched as the players started to emerge from the paths. I carefully examined their faces for any indication of disappointment - I found none. They had gone in as strangers, and came out as teams, two members (37 & 42) with two younger (18) my father in his late 60's, my husband in his late 40's. They excitedly exchanged points of the play with each other and for the first time in my life I saw with my own eyes, the ties that bind. It is a beautiful experience and one that makes me realize that what we are doing may not have been perfect and the way that we had planned for it but, it wasn't all about the props, - it was about the relationships that emerge from this very sacred shared experience.
I believe that my Dad was proud. I know he enjoyed it. His only comment, "It's definitely more World War II" - "I'll work on that Dad", I said.
visit us on www.adrenalinejunkieinc.com
For more info, contact Dennis Layman at Dennis@adrenalinejunkieinc.com