The Soul Repair Center offers free monthly webinars of use to religious leaders and professional caregivers supporting veterans and their families.
“What I Want You to Know ”
Tuesday, April 23, 2024 at 1:00 pm CDT
Register at https://voa.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_n1xJ3reUQt6GgMkvvf3l0A
What I Want You to Know is a gripping and intimate account of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars told through interviews with veterans who fought in these wars. The film was executive produced by two veterans. It had its world premiere at the Maine International Film Festival, where it won the Audience Favorite Award. It was an official selection at the International Film Festival in the Hague. It won an Award of Excellence from the Impact DOCS Awards. Rita Nakashima Brock, Sr. VP of Moral Injury Recovery Programs for Volunteers of America, and Nancy Ramsay, Director of the Soul Repair Center at Brite Divinity School highly commend this film as a powerful window into the experience of military moral injury.
Combat veterans Should Not watch the film or participate in this webinar. An in-person viewing will be arranged by the Shay Center for combat veterans with hopes for the first event to be scheduled next fall.
Though the film is challenging for anyone to view, the Soul Repair Center is sharing it in this webinar because it will be very helpful for those who engage with veterans of these two wars. We especially hope that faculty, VA and hospital chaplains, medical care providers, spiritual care providers, and military chaplains will choose to watch this film. All who watch the film should anticipate a challenging emotional response and take care to assure your well-being.
The film will be screened at the Moral Injury Project at Syracuse University and Le Moyne College (March 20 & 21), and at the International Center for Moral Injury’s 2024 Conference (April 8). It has also screened, and has upcoming screenings, for colleges and universities, peace groups, veterans’ groups, and groups that advocate for veterans and for a restrained US foreign policy.
The film (approximately 90 minutes in length) will be accessible for 48 hours in advance of the webinar. A link to the film will be sent on April 21 to those who register. If necessary, please contact 988 to seek assistance in processing the emotional impact of the film.
For more information about the film, go to www.whatiwantyoutoknow-film.com
Presenters
Travis Weiner, executive producer, and film participant, served with the 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division from 2004-2009, deploying twice to Iraq. Travis left the army in 2009 as a Sergeant. He attended the University of Massachusetts, earning his degree in 2012, then worked for Mass General Hospital and the Red Sox Foundation's Home Base Program as a Veteran Outreach Worker/Peer Support Specialist. He left Home Base in 2014 to attend the University of Colorado Law School. He currently works as a Senior Deputy State Public Defender in Weld County, Colorado.
Alan Pitts, film participant, is the son of a member of the US Army Special Forces and brother to an Army reservist who also deployed to Iraq. Alan joined the Army in 2001 and served in the 44th Engineer Battalion, 2nd infantry. He served in South Korea until his deployment to Iraq in 2004. He was seriously injured in an ambush in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, and retired from the army as a Sergeant in 2006. He’s worked with several organizations that advocate for veterans, for political causes, and against militarism. He currently lives in Colorado with his wife and son.
Catie Foertsch, director, is a former journalist and veteran corporate filmmaker who lives outside of Boston, Massachusetts. This is her first feature-length documentary film.
Register at https://voa.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_n1xJ3reUQt6GgMkvvf3l0A