Comstock's magazine 1217 - December 2017 | Page 91

Sandra Boyd, a veteran of the Vietnam war, says that working on her photography skills with Image Nation helped her “come to grips with being a veteran.”
“We have two goals with Image
Nation,” Llewellyn says. “We want to
engage with veterans and expose the
non-military public to vets’ issues.”
Over the course of 12 work-
shops, veterans learn to operate
either a camera or a camera phone,
and receive tips about composition,
lighting, settings and more. Llewellyn
encourages students to photograph
what is important to them and to
think deeply about meaning. He says
when people confront meaning, feel-
ings come to the surface.
“It is very satisfying to see people
go through significant transforma-
tions — technical and emotional,”
Llewellyn says. “Through self-ex-
pression, they learn something new
about their lives. They learn, and
then they inspire other students to
dig as deeply as possible. It can be-
come therapeutic.”
Llewellyn says each student de-
velops an individual subject of work,
which is beneficial because it allows
the public to see the humanity of vet-
erans through their photos.
Tammy Becker serves as the board
chair of Welcome Home Vets, and
works with veterans and family mem-
bers to understand post-traumatic
stress disorder, anxiety and trauma.
“A unique benefit of Image Nation
is that it helps veterans not feel so
isolated,” Becker says. “It provides a
sense of camaraderie. Some veterans
keep things bottled up, never even
telling their spouses. It’s important
to be around others who know what
you’re feeling, to have a safe path for
connectedness. PTSD can’t be ‘cured,’
but tools like Image Nation can help
vets cope to live full lives,” she says.
Becker says veterans often struggle
to talk about PTSD, so many prefer
nonverbal creative expression, such
as writing songs or photography.
“Many vets saw traumatic things
in combat or have survivor’s guilt.
Some try to shove their feelings into
a box and keep the lid on,” says Beck-
er. “The Image Nation program helps
them express these feelings.” n
Trish Moratto Litke is a communica-
tions consultant who specializes in
public relations, social media strategy,
copywriting and journalism. She is an
outdoor enthusiast and avid traveler,
which has taken her to more than 40
countries. She is based among the pine
trees in Grass Valley.
December 2017 | comstocksmag.com
91