About

Veteran Wellness Excursions

Enhancing the quality of life for veterans by immersing them in         nature-based, outdoor, adventurous experiences.

Launched in 2021, Veteran Wellness Excursions is a 501(C)(3) organization committed to supporting veterans in experiences in the outdoors, as well as other fun and exciting events. The purpose of these experiences is to engage veterans in exciting activities as a tool to aid in healing from the experiences endured during their time in service, build a tightknit veteran community and to ease the transition into the civilian lifestyle. The organization sponsors outdoor activities and coordinates events in which veterans and their families may participate.

Mission

To enhance the quality of life for veterans by immersing them in nature-based, outdoor, adventurous experiences.

Vision

Helping America's veterans heal and ease into civilian life through fun, exciting and adventurous opportunities.

Values

  • Esprit de corps
  • Promoting a healthy lifestyle, and;
  • Enhancing the quality of life for our veterans
Kevin W. Sheffield

Our Founder – Kevin Sheffield

Being born into a third-generation Navy family, Kevin continued the tradition by swearing his oath of enlistment in 2009 to become a Navy Diver. Unfortunately, several injuries and the arduous demands of his job ultimately tore his body down to the point where he was medically retired in 2019. For the first time in his life, Kevin was no longer a part of a team. Even worst, imprisoned in a body filled with excessive pain that none of the prescribed pills or injections was able to free him from. As such, Kevin began to lose hope and civilian life was proving more difficult to navigate than expected. 
 
Having a difficult time adapting to his new life, Kevin suffered from depression. Simply watching the news would exasperate his depression to the point where he started to lose the desire to live. Every single day, 17 veterans choose to permanently end their pain and suffering and Kevin had first-hand experience having served with honorable men that would tragically add to this statistic. Fortunately, Kevin had enough of a support group at that time that he would not succumb to the same outcome as some of his close friends. 
 
What ultimately freed Kevin from his despair was an outing with fellow medically retired divers. “We went paddleboarding at a site we used to do training dives at when we were in the Navy. It wasn’t crazy or an adrenaline pumping experience, but simply being out on the water with someone I knew and trusted on a deep level, catching up on lost time, sharing each other’s current struggles and reminiscing on some the experiences we had together brought back something that had been missing from my life for a couple years at that point, FUN!”
 
From that point on, Kevin and his fellow veterans would meet up every other week or so at different locations. Having become proficient at planning and executing high risk operations in the Navy, those skills were easily transferred to planning and executing more exciting excursions in less accessible locations, sometimes at night during full moon or meteor shower events. “These excursions not only gave us a fun platform to exercise and live
a healthy lifestyle, but also served to awaken a sense of adventure that had become distant to us but was a part of the driving force in our personalities that had drawn us into the military to begin with.” 

Eventually, these paddleboard excursions transcended into other activities like mountain biking, whitewater rafting, surfing and backcountry skiing. Regardless of the activity, consistently getting outside (a familiar and comfortable environment for veterans) and simply having fun has had a profound positive impact on their lives, both mentally and physically.  These exciting and therapeutic experiences are what we at Veteran Wellness Excursions wish to share.