HeroFront podcast host Josh White shares his military career journey that led to telling stories of other heroes on this week’s Tango Alpha Lima podcast.
Josh White is host of the award-winning podcast HeroFront, which focuses on mental health awareness and resiliency by sharing inspiring stories of veterans, authors, entrepreneurs, business leaders and other heroes. The storytelling podcast emerged from White’s 20-year military career in the U.S. Air Force in maintenance, medical and military funeral honors.
“It’s such a blessing that I can now give back with the storytelling,” said White, a senior noncommissioned officer in the Air Force, on this week’s episode of American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast.
The storytelling concept started during White’s 12-hour shifts on Kadena Air Force Base in Okinawa, Japan, where he worked on aerospace ground equipment alongside others who turned into his best friends.
“It was hearing their life story,” about careers and permanent change of station moves, White said. “It humanizes people. It’s easy to label people and put them in boxes, but we all have a story, we all have lessons, we all have so much value to give. That storytelling element stuck with me from that day on.”
However, storytelling for White may not have happened if he didn’t get a second chance in his military career.
After six years in the military, White found himself in a dark place. He had no money, was an alcoholic and depressed. “I was quite literally worse off after six years which is just humiliating,” he said. “I couldn’t imagine going back home worse off than I started, especially being a fourth-generation airman. The shame was tremendous.”
White got his second chance as an Air Force medic.
“It was the second chance that I needed. It allowed me to start turning my life around, to start being proud of myself. And finally creating the life that I always wanted.”
His healing journey continued in the Air Force honor guard.
“It was the hardest job,” said White, who conducted seven active-duty funerals – five being suicides. “I have gray hair from it. I’m talking moments where I thought I was going to pass out because it was emotionally intense to be there for these families. But it was giving back and being there for people in their darkest hour that truly started healing me.”
Now, White continues healing himself and others by storytelling.
“I wanted something I could do to give back, to highlight people, to show them honor and make them proud of themselves once the episode comes out,” he said. “I was looking inside of me when the healing was helping other people.”
One of his proudest episodes helped heal Tiwanda Griffin-Greer, who was a first sergeant when she was held at gunpoint by an active shooter at Lackland Training Annex in 2016. The shooter, another airman, forced Griffin-Greer to call her commander down, where he then shot and killed him. White said Griffin-Greer was ostracized from the Air Force community because of others saying what they would have done differently.
“That episode not only healed her, it started getting her invited to different bases to speak. She got welcomed back to the Air Force community,” White said, and her story is now part of Air Force training. “To see her get embraced again through her story, her testimony, and have it be part of first sergeant curriculum, is one of my proudest.”
Also, co-hosts Stacy Pearsall and Adam Marr discuss:
• The 50-year anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War and the firsthand stories of what those final days of the war were like.
• A restaurant known for its wings and located around several around military bases is soon to be closing its doors.
• VA breakthroughs in health care include the nicotine patch, pacemakers, CT scans and more.
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