Dublin veteran is youngest of this year's Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame inductees
A Dublin resident is to be among a class of 20 Buckeye State veterans to be inducted into the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame Class of 2022.
The 31st-annual induction ceremony is to be at 10 a.m. Nov. 29 at the Fawcett Event Center, 2400 Olentangy River Road, on the campus of the Ohio State University.
The Class of 2022 was selected from among 87 nominations and this year’s class of 20 veterans joins 932 Ohio veterans from all military branches inducted since 1992.
Among the 20 veterans to be inducted this year is Adam Carr, 39, and the youngest member of this year’s inductees.
A 12-year veteran of the U.S. Army, Carr enlisted in the Ohio Army National Guard in 2002, shortly after graduating from Wayne High School in Huber Heights, a Dayton suburb.
His paternal and maternal grandfathers each served in the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy, respectively, but Carr said he was further inspired to serve his country when “watching how the U.S.A. came together after the towers fell,” referring to the 9/11 terrorist attacks that occurred during his senior year in high school.
“I felt a strong call to service.”
During his service in the Ohio Army and Air Force National Guards and a Green Beret, Carr was a member of Special Forces and deployed in Japan, where his battalion helped train those from other countries in counter-terrorism measures.
He was also deployed in Afghanistan and the Philippines.
After his discharge in 2014, Carr began finding ways to continue service to his country and fellow veterans.
Carr served as an ambassador to the Green Beret Foundation and as executive director of Save a Warrior, a suicide-prevention program for veterans.
Under Carr’s leadership, he grew the fledging nonprofit organization through partnerships with the U.S. government and private Fortune 500 corporations.
Carr said he has stepped back and is now preparing others to continue the mission of Save a Warrior.
“It is a tragedy and it breaks my heart that there are veterans who survive danger serving our country only to come home and take their own life,” Carr said.
“There is a place to heal,” said Carr, referring to a 72-hour program for veterans through Save a Warrior offered at a site in California.
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Employing “an amalgamation of disciplines,” including psychology, neurobiology and anthropology, the experience is designed with the goal of providing veterans with the tools “to go from surviving to thriving,” Carr said.
Another mission of Save a Warrior is to guide a veteran in a transition back into civilian life.
“There, they are of a team with a common mission,” but many struggle to find the same connections at home, Carr said.
Through the auspices of Save a Warrior, Carr also oversaw the development of the National Center of Excellence for Complex Post Traumatic Stress.
Carr, a graduate of the Fisher College of Business at the Ohio State University, currently serves as director of innovation for Save a Warrior.
He has further supported the cause of veterans by testifying before the Ohio Senate regarding the need for policy and funding for veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
Carr is a lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and Disabled American Veterans while supporting other organizations, such as the American Legion and American Veterans (AMVETS).
“I keep busy, but it all revolves around serving other people and our veterans. If fills me (and) gives me a purpose in life to do it,” Carr said.
Carr said he would never have sought the nomination and is “beyond humbled and honored” to be recognized.
Maj. Gen. Deborah Ashenhurst, retired and serving in Gov. Mike DeWine’s cabinet as director of the Ohio Department of Veteran Services, said Carr used his first-hand experience of serving in the military to mold Save a Warrior into the program it is today.
“In the army as a member of the Special Forces, (Carr) witnessed the impact that war and military service can have on the members of the military, (but) he also recognizes that the trauma our first responders see in the course of their daily duties can have the same impact as war on the military,” Ashenhurst said.
“Seeing the need for helping people work through the emotional toll of the tragedies witnessed, (Carr) found a way to help them heal through the Save a Warrior program. His tireless efforts have given those struggling with addiction, destructive behaviors and suicidal thoughts a new beginning to a productive life.”
Carr resides in Dublin with his wife, Tarah, and their two sons and one daughter, ages 14 to 7.
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Dublin veteran is youngest of this year's Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame inductees
