The Soul Repair Center offers free monthly webinars of use to religious leaders and professional caregivers supporting veterans and their families.

"Exploring Rising Levels of Suicide among Non-Combat Military Personnel"

Tuesday, October 22

1:00 p.m. CDT

Register at https://voa.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_41hqo3OpQnmmuGCwiKlwzw

This webinar addresses a substantial increase in suicide among personnel not linked to PTSD. According to the NYT article noted here, “young men in the military who have never deployed in combat are at the highest risk of suicide.” The NYT article cited a former officer at Fort Riley suggesting, “suicide has become a normal part of Army culture.” Armored units are especially affected.” The intense pace of its training “sustainable readiness” methodology may also contribute to the stressors. This webinar draws on the wisdom of two deeply informed representatives of Army leadership who draw on their expertise to expand on the fact and implications of the substantial rise in suicide apart from PTSD and even battlefield experience.

Col. Mark Lee, CHpln, US Army began his service as Dean of the Army Graduate School September 8, 2023. Previously he directed the CPE Center at Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, TX. He holds a DMin and PhD, and certifications in ACPE and BCC. Chaplain Lee previously served as chief of Theater Spiritual Resilience as the US Army Europe-Africa Headquarters in Wiesbaden, German. He also served in South Korea and deployed twice in Iraq. Prior to his service in the Army, CH Lee served as senior pastor of Community Church of Honolulu and concurrently as a chaplain in the Hawaii Air National Guard. He holds a PhD from University of Aberdeen, Scotland, a DMin from Erskine Seminary, an MDiv from Princeton Theological School, and an MBA and BS from the University of Southern California.

Brigadier General (ret) Stephen Xenakis, MD is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1998 at the rank of brigadier general and entered an active career in start-up medical technologies and clinical practice. He has advised the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other senior Department of Defense officials on mental health, the effects of blast concussion, and suicide. During his career in the Army, he pioneered the introduction of telemedicine applications including the development of a device for electronic house call services. He has an active clinical and research interest in promising medical technologies. He founded of the Center for Translational Medicine to develop treatments and conducts tests on brain related conditions affecting soldiers and veterans.