Vail Veterans Program brings back caregiver retreats

The Vail Veterans Program is wrapping up a winter and summer of beneficial programs that help military wounded and their families after taking a hiatus during COVID-19. Although the pandemic put a halt on many things, the military injured and their families were still going through their day-to-day struggles.

Back this year were the on-snow programs that use adaptive ski and snowboard equipment as necessary to get those injured out to enjoy the slopes of Vail and Beaver Creek. The Vail Veterans Program hosts winter and summer programs for individual vets as well as programs that invite the whole family to share in the experience.

In 2015, Vail Veterans Program developed the Military Caregiver Retreat, which is designed to specifically provide support to caregivers who support injured military veterans. Military Caregiver Reunion Programs were added to build upon the information shared at the Caregiver Retreat Programs, with a focus on resilience. 

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“Both programs offer tailored nutrition and wellness workshops, tools for stress management, financial seminars, self-care and reflection time, and most importantly, provide an opportunity to cultivate a deep network of support and bonding between caregivers,” said Jen Brown, executive director of the Vail Veterans Program.

Vail Veterans Program hosted 11 caregivers for the Military Caregiver Retreat in mid-September and 17 participants at the Military Caregiver Reunion last weekend.

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Megan West was one of those participants. She is the caregiver to her husband, James West, a retired Army staff sergeant. She participated in one of the previous Military Caregiver Retreats and the family programming.

“We first heard about the Vail Veterans Program when we were at Brooke Army Medical Center,” Megan West said.

James West had been severely injured with burns from the waist up on June 2, 2006, in Iraq. The couple spent four and a half years in San Antonio, Texas, at Brooke Army Medical Center and the Center for the Intrepid doing rehabilitation surgeries and physical therapy. He had participated in the Vail Veterans programs solo prior to the family being invited back to Vail.

“The winter family retreat was so neat and our family was able to reconnect after going through so much trauma. It was very meaningful to us and we could focus on each other and being with other people who understood,” Megan West said.

The family returned for a summer program and it was equally as rejuvenating. But the Caregiver Programs are what really resonates with West.

“You really get to talk about what caregivers go through specifically and develop a support system with one another and you have them to talk to and check in with,” Megan West said. “And (Vail Veterans Program Founder Cheryl Jensen) has become like family to us, she’s watched our family grow, she has checked in on us and those things are very meaningful to us.”

At the Caregivers Reunion Program, participants return to Vail to take part in a Resilience Training workshop with trainers from the Johnson & Johnson Human Performance Institute. Resilience Training prepares military caregivers to approach stress management in an innovative and proactive way.

“The journey of being a caregiver never ends and it’s a rollercoaster, you don’t know what to expect. This is our first time going through all these injuries, that was traumatic enough. But it is still a process, we are learning things as we age and how it still affects each one of us because those effects don’t go away,” Megan West said.

The small group breakout sessions, writing and thought-provoking questions help the participants learn more about themselves and what their self-talk sounds like.

“Are we being hard on ourselves? Because we tend to be our own worst critic. So, ask yourself, ‘Would I say something like that to my best friend?’ Probably not. So, we need to start thinking, ‘Well, I wouldn’t say that to my best friend, why would I say that to myself?’ It’s not right. So, it’s a great way to look at it,” Megan West said.  

There is also some time to enjoy the outdoors with a raft trip and hikes, spa treatments, and group meals where the caregivers can bond even more.

These skills are meant to be taken with them and incorporated into their day-to-day world. Megan West said that she shares the skills she learns here with her husband and kids, who are now ages 17, 14 and 10.

“You feel refreshed when you leave, you’re ready to go back home and do your best and practice those things that you’ve learned and sharing them even with your spouse sometimes, ‘Hey, I learned this, let’s talk about it and how it affects both of us, how it affects the family.’ It does make a difference,” Megan West said.

Similar to other Vail Veterans Program offerings Military Caregiver Programs are offered at no cost to participants and are funded by generous partners, sponsors and donors of the Vail Veterans Program.

“I’m just very grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of this program and to come back and be able to build upon what we’re learning,” Megan West said. “It’s so meaningful to know that people care. I’ll never forget the Vail Veterans Program because the Vail Veterans Program never forgot about me.”

To learn more about the programs, and how to be involved or to donate, go to VailVeteransProgram.org.