'Right man for the job': Local veteran Jason White is part of Mr. & Ms. Military Pageant contest

Jason White served 10 years active duty in the Marine Corps and two combat deployments to Iraq before taking medical retirement in 2014 related to injuries from an IED explosion six years earlier.

White has dealt with personal issues and a PTSD diagnosis since his return to civilian life and sought treatment through the Texas-based Birdwell Foundation for PTSD.

Through it all, White has remained a tireless advocate, giving back to fellow veterans. By 2019 he became director of the Florida chapter of the Birdwell Foundation for PTSD, located in Ocala.

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White’s many support services for veterans and first responders through the foundation include 24-hour crisis and suicide intervention and group sessions.

He is also a leader in several other area outreaches to benefit veterans.

“(T)here is a rising number of veterans and first responders who are not only needing help but who are seeking that help. I see the stigma washing away about getting treatment, but I have also experienced so many fellow veterans first responders and their families not knowing where to go or who to turn to,” White wrote, in part, in an email.

White's efforts reflected on social media have attracted the attention of Calvin Hill, organizer of the California-based “Mr. and Ms. Military Pageant” competition, and earned White an invitation to compete in the military-themed event.

The Mr. & Ms. Military Pageant is designed to showcase veterans who are leaders in their own communities and work to help fellow service members through various outreaches and charities.

The competition has a finale pageant in San Diego, California on Oct. 21. The public can vote for their favorite team and contribute to the veterans’ sponsoring outreaches. Winners will have the highest amount of votes/donations raised through novel fundraising local events.

White feels winning the contest would provide a platform to further assist veterans and serve as an opportunity to represent Ocala.

White said that locally, arrangements are being made to launch a car show and possibly a fashion show by mid-August.

Information will be posted at the Birdwell Foundation.org website under the Florida location.

'The right man for the job'

Morrey Deen, former Ocala chief of police and retired Army major, is a friend of White's and is familiar with the Birdwell Foundation for PTSD programs. Deen said White is "the right man for the job."

Contest organizer Hill explained the reason behind the competition and pageant.

“(M)ilitary award ceremonies were typically tucked away on military bases” and “the general public had no clue to the many humanitarian, meritorious and community achievements their troops were involved in… Mr. & Ms. Military Pageant was born to give the troops a spotlight off base," Hill wrote, in part, in an email.

White is teamed with Illinois native and 10-year Army veteran Carrie Beavers, a victim of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) early in her service career, which resulted in PTSD.

She was deployed to Germany during the Gulf War and served in medical services.

Beavers remained in the medical field in civilian life but PTSD continued to cause her problems and she once contemplated suicide.

Now considered a 100% disabled veteran, Beavers operates Soldier Girl Coffee Co. (soldiergirlcoffeecompany.com) and supports veteran-related charities aimed at PTSD treatment and support of victims of MST.

Both veterans are sponsored by the Texas-based Birdwell Foundation for PTSD.

About Jason White

White, 36, a native of New Haven, Connecticut, lived in a number of foster homes until age 5 when he was adopted by a family with a history of military service. The family moved to the Ocala area when White was about 7.

White joined the Marines in 2004 just after graduation from Vanguard High School and took medical retirement in 2014.

White went through a period adjusting to civilian life – his military service included seeing a youth casualty during combat and lost and injured comrades – and dealt with a number of family concerns upon his return.

White helped revitalize the Veterans Club as a student at College of Central Florida in 2016. By 2017, White had attended Camp Valor, an 18-week camp for PTSD treatment put on by the Birdwell Foundation in Texas. He credits the treatment for a personal turnaround.

The Birdwell Foundation for PTSD, with chapters in 10 states. seeks to raise awareness and reduce veteran and first responder suicide. The foundation’s motto is “no one heals alone" and according to birdwellfoundtion.org., in 2021, 52,198 "one on one" sessions were held and 20,226 people participated in group sessions.

White began serving as director of the Birdwell Foundation for PTSD chapter by 2019.

"What I’m doing is therapy even for me. It’s my purpose and a lifestyle. Knowing we can heal, and we have a culture willing to be there, to go through it with (veterans and first responders) and heal together is what motivates me,” White wrote, in part, in an email.

“I also see a lot of amazing fellow veterans first responders family members supporters and other organizations reaching out and doing everything in their power to help save lives,” he wrote.

White’s veteran outreach has been expanding to areas including Gainesville, Brooksville, Leesburg and Lake Worth.

White also serves as president of Warrior Wheels, an outreach that provides donated vehicles to veterans. Warrior Wheels has presented 13 vehicles to veterans over the last two years.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala, Florida veteran part of Mr. and Ms. Military Pageant