My name is Shane Cunningham, and I’m the owner of Broken Jarhead. BJH is motivated to bring awareness to mental health in veterans by speaking the quiet parts out loud. I started by making vulgar art to get some cheap laughs and cheer up veteran friends during COVID last year, and evolved into stickers patches, and challenge coins. Currently, BJH is creating an apparel line dedicated to being made in America, by American textiles, and assembled by Americans. Our inaugural line will be the RED Apparel Line which will have red accents and accessories to bring awareness to Remembering Everyone Deployed. We will be donating a pair of socks to deployed military with each sale. PODCAST AWARDS: I learned about use of podcasts as a way to help veterans cope and heal from PTSD and other issues. I really like the idea of encouraging growth through action instead of being just another veteran company that says they want to bring awareness. I looked for an awards ceremony for podcasts and found iHeart obviously, and The People Podcast Awards. I couldn’t find anything for Veterans, so decided to create it – how hard could it be!? BJH is proud to announce the 1st Annual Veterans Podcast Awards which will be held on October 5th! Our custom trophy is made by a female vet owned trophy company locally. It will be a Golden War Hammer with a placard listing the details of the award and the Vet Podcast Award logo. What says Vet Podcasting better than a bludgeoning tool and a microphone? NATIONAL MILITARY PODCAST DAY: We scheduled the awards ceremony on September 30, International Podcast Day – seemed fitting. Then discovered the other award show is the same day. So, being the rational person that I am, I filed the paperwork and paid the fee required to establish National Military Podcast Day! This occurs October 5th. Since Enduring Freedom began October 6/7, we thought we’d have a day of celebration before a day of remembrance. WHY: One of the best ways to deal with PTSD and other issues is to talk! Many veterans use podcasting in a therapeutic way but quit too soon. We want to encourage the discourse by offering a free awards ceremony and celebrating a National Day! We want to encourage active duty and vets alike to keep pushing and never give in to the demons! SPONSORSHIPS: In order to keep our commitment to encouraging growth through action, we recently began sponsoring DV Gaming. They are a great group of veterans that play an array of video games, stream and discuss veteran issues we face, and hold events to raise money for charities that help veterans. We are proud to have the opportunity to be a sponsor! www.veteranpodcastawards.com Follow Shane: FB: Broken Jarhead IG: @brokenjarhead Web: brokenjarhead.com, thebrokenpodcast.live, brokenjarhead.blog My Firebase: solo.to/wm2podcast