PATHFINDER: HELP VETERANS
CHOOSE A BETTER FUTURE
BY ELANA DUFFY
P
athfinder
was
born out of necessity. I left
the Army with
a Purple Heart
and a sheet of
paper with a list
of government-selected
Veteran resources. I headed to New York, dropped
my bag of leftover military equipment in the
back of a closet, and handed my records to the VA
hospital. But now what? I
had no path to follow.
Nothing from the Army’s sheet proved to be a
good fit, so I was on my
own. Through circumstances that included a
hurricane and some incredible people I sought
out my own list of transition resources. With
thousands of potential
resources and organizations to sift through, it
still took me over a year to
find what I needed, and I
considered myself lucky.
Worse off were those who
couldn’t find a good fit
with an organization or
couldn’t find a suitable
resource. I watched some
deteriorate, some giving
up altogether.
I started getting calls
about particular resources. I passed on my experiences, using them to
help friends make better
choices and increase their
chances of success. But the
process was slow: I was
only one person. What
our community needed
was a way to hear and
share more. We needed to
have a louder voice both
with each other and with
resources.
So I connected with
Army veteran Michael
Cessaro and we founded
Pathfinder, a platform of
ratings and reviews for
any resource, organization, or government entity
that provides a service to
anyone in the greater Vet-
Elana Duffy Source: Hirepurpose
eran community. Like me,
Michael and our small
team of programmers
and designers had experienced struggles during
transition. The more we
talked to fellow Veterans,
the more we found we
were not alone. Pathfinder’s system of experience
sharing was the solution.
Upon launching www.
pathfinder.vet, the reviews started coming in.
With in-depth ratings
that could be completed
in under a minute, we
heard about everything
from surly receptionists
to great community service projects.
And the reviews of
Pathfinder were even
more encouraging. “This
is what I needed last year.”
“This is what I wish I had
when I got back from Vietnam.”
“There’s an org for
that” is becoming the
mantra of the Veteran in
the 21st century. After
over a decade of war and
seemingly no end to the
need for a large military
force, tens of thousands
have stepped up to create
organizations and services for military members
coming home.
With approximately
22 million Veterans spanning multiple generations
and 250 thousand new
Veterans
transitioning
each year, we need the
help. But from mental
health and service animals to fitness and social
networks, the offerings
can be as varied as the
community they help to
serve.
Help everyone make
better choices. Head to
www.pathfinder.vet, register, and leave reviews of
your experiences.
With your help, we can
build a better future for
all.
LEARN MORE: www.pathfinder.vet
NOVEMBER 11, 2015
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