These special episodes of the Tango Alpha Lima podcast feature interviews with MandatoryFunDay, GWOT Memorial Foundation CEO Rod Rodriguez, USAA, Mutual of Omaha and others who talk about the Army-Navy Game, transition issues, dealing with PTSD and more.
On this week’s episode of The American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast, co-hosts Stacy Pearsall, Adam Marr and Joe Worley catch up with an interesting collection of guests and also participate in various activities during the recent American Legion National Convention in Tampa, Fla.
In fact, we kept them so busy during their time recording in the podcast booth and experiencing the convention that we have a special double episode this week. Among the highlights:
First episode:
Mutual of Omaha: The hosts met and chatted with Melissa Bennett of Mutual of Omaha and Kylie Reynolds of Amazing Animals about coming to convention with MoO Wild Kingdom. Among the animals they brought were snakes, a sloth and a baby alligator. Fun fact: Sloths have really sharp teeth. “We really enjoy partnering with the Legion,” Bennett said. “The two companies have a lot of synergies. We’re both over 100 years old. We’re very conservative and we are here for the people. We’re really all about helping one another.”
USAA: Next up is Chris Figueroa, Military Relationships Director at USAA, who talks about joining the Army on Sept. 11, 2001, his 21st birthday. “There is so much mission alignment between USAA and The American Legion,” said Figueroa, who also talks about his career at USAA. “We’re both about 100 years old. We both take care of veterans. Our mission (at USAA) is to take care of those who served. And that is The American Legion.” He is a member of Alamo Post 2 in San Antonio, Texas.
Sony: Also visiting the podcast studio was LJ Pocsi, who played the bassoon during her time in the Marine Corps. She is now the Head of Sales at OTC Hearing Aids. Pocsi talks about her military story, work at Sony, and the new technology of Sony OTC hearing aids. These devices help keep veterans from feeling the isolation that can lead to depression and suicide, she says. “Your brain needs to reprioritize the sounds,” she explained, saying the hearing aids require an adjustment period. “The biggest thing is to wear them to get used to them.”
MilTrac: Rounding out this episode is Air Force veteran Matt Scherer, president of the Military Transition Roundtable (MilTRAC). He talks about his organization’s services for military transition and career assistance. “If you know a young person in the military, have them document everything in their medical record,” he advised. “Because when you make your case with the VA for your disability claims you have to be able to document it.”
Second episode:
MandatoryFunDay: Austin von Letkemann, better known as his Instagram handle MandatoryFunDay, catches up with the podcast hosts. (Previous full episode here.) He updates the hosts on what’s new such as his new podcast and new house, which includes orange walls in one of his daughters’ bedrooms. Von Letkemann also looks ahead to the Army-Navy Game. “That’s going to be a blast, we had so much fun last year,” says the current active-duty soldier.
GWOT Memorial Foundation: Chief Executive Officer Rod Rodriguez and Chief of Staff Jennifer Ballou introduce a new special series coming soon to the Tango Alpha Lima podcast family: Welcome Home. “This is not about policy, this is not about politics,” Rodriguez explained. “It’s about people, it’s about patriotism. How do you tell that story? It’s about focusing on the people. What better way to do that by telling those stories.” The pilot episode launches Sept. 11, followed by the six-episode series, all of which will be available everywhere you get Tango Alpha Lima, starting Oct. 2.
Community Service: Co-hosts Joe Worley and Stacy Pearsall visit Post 5 in Tampa to check out the annual community service project during The American Legion’s national convention. More than 40 American Legion Family members helped clean up the gravesites and perform other tasks. Alyse Duffy, president of the American Legion Cemetery Corp., provides details about the work that was done and why it matters. Additionally, American Legion Past National Commander Denise Rohan talks about how community service is part of the organization’s USA 250 Challenge to celebrate America’s birthday (learn more here). “It’s what we do, it’s what we are all about,” she explains. “That’s why we have the USA 250 Challenge. Just because we took our uniforms off, doesn’t mean we will stop serving.”
Heroes United to Heal: Navy veteran Donna Michaels of Heroes United to Heal (HU2H) Foundation talks about her program to help veterans get access to TBI/PTSD therapy. “Once you have had the camaraderie that exists in the military, especially in a special warfare or other tight-knit community, I genuinely don’t think you’ll find that anywhere on that level,” said Michaels, who also had a career in law enforcement. “But I will say that it was nice to be part of a greater good, which is what I was missing.” After overcoming suicidal ideation, she launched the HU2H website in 2022 after hearing from countless veterans and first responders who were seeking help.
Protecting Vets Foundation: Bridget Lake, a Navy veteran, talks about her work with an accredited law firm that helps fight against claim sharks and augment what service officers can do when fighting tough claims and heading to appeals. “If you are not in The American Legion or VFW, it’s easy to get scammed by a claims shark,” she says, noting that the Legion and others provide these claims services at no cost to any veteran. (Trigger warning – Lake also discusses her own story of overcoming MST.)
You can also check out the more than 300 Tango Alpha Lima podcasts available in both audio and video formats here. You can also download episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify other major podcast-hosting sites. The video version is available at the Legion’s YouTube channel.
- Tango Alpha Lima