It’s one thing when you discover a life-changing outlet that helps you heal from trauma.

It’s another when you find a way to share that with others so they can benefit, too.

Former U.S. Marine Richard Casper launched CreatiVets in 2013 upon his graduation from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). His goal is to offer opportunities of relief and healing for the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our country.

The mission of CreatiVets is to use various forms of art, including songwriting, visual arts, music, and creative writing, to help disabled veterans cope with service-related trauma (i.e., post-traumatic stress, or PTS) by fostering self-expression in a way that allows them to transform their stories of trauma and struggle into an art form that can inspire and motivate continued healing.

And the group partners with the best creatives in the industry, such as top-notch, Grammy-winning songwriters in Nashville and a summer session at one of the world’s most prestigious art institutes, SAIC. It also works with the number-one public art school in the country, Virginia Commonwealth University.

Richard Casper is unrelenting in his passion to bring art to the veteran community, and was recently recognized by Time magazine as a 2017 Next Generation Leader.

Related: How a Green Beret’s Passion for Vets’ Issues Led to This Successful Product

CreatiVets is a frontline leader that should be on the list of most wanted nonprofits to support in 2018.

Frontline leader (founder): Richard Casper

Name of company/organization: CreatiVets, founded 2013

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Location: Nashville, Tennessee, with a summer session program at SAIC

Post-9/11 service connection: U.S. Marine Corps (Infantry)

Tours of duty: Iraq (Fallujah), 2007

One-sentence tagline and mission statement: Did I just art?

Marjorie K. Eastman is a U.S. Army veteran. Eastman served 10 years in the Army Reserve, including two combat deployments. She received a Bronze Star and Combat Action Badge. She is also a 2017 National Independent Publisher Award-winning author of “The Frontline Generation: How We Served Post 9/11.” This OpsLens piece is used by permission.

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