A new way to Be the One: Post to use gaming to reach struggling veterans
American Legion Post 58 in Guthrie, Okla., already had embraced The American Legion’s Be the One suicide prevention program by starting a successful peer-to-peer support program last fall.
But that support didn’t stop there. It’s now going to use gaming to provide a place for veterans struggling mentally to gather and find camaraderie and support.
On July 10, Post 58 debuted to the public its Bunker 58 E-Sports grand opening, drawing more than 100 Legion Family members, other veterans and members of the community to the event. Working with Regiment Gaming – the nation’s largest veteran and military gaming community – and custom PC builder Paradox Customs, the post installed four gaming PC’s, each with a mouse, keyboard, controller, headset and mouse pad.
George Shafer, chairman of Post 58’s Bunker 58 E-Sports Committee, said the response to the grand opening was overwhelming and praised the committee for making it happen.
“The committee that we have is second to none,” he said. “They have been sacrificial. Gracious with my mistakes with the logistical situations that happen when you’re coordinating a major event. Our committee stuck it out and made it happen.
“Most of our committee members would have been ecstatic if we would have had 10-20 people show up. There were so many connections and opportunities that sprang from that event that we’re still processing. We are so grateful and so humbled not only by the veterans, but also our community who showed up in droves.”
The idea behind Bunker 58 had its inception around two years ago during a conversation between Shafer and two fellow relatively new Legionnaires. “We read the article in (The American Legion Magazine) about the partnership with Regiment Gaming. And our eyes just lit up.
“We began doing some initial research, minor things like how much would the proper amount of commitment cost. What types of systems would we be using. We put in the legwork and got involved with Regiment online on (social platform) Discord. We started participating in their community nights.”
Shafer ended up messaging Regiment CEO and Founder Chris Earl through Discord. His interactions with Earl and Paradox Customs founder Arpit Manaktala led to praise from Shafer.
“The level of professionalism of Chris Earl and Arpit Manaktala, from start to finish, they communicated clearly with us,” Shafer said. “I never went more than a day without getting a response if I sent something up to them, which is a big deal with two CEOs. They didn’t treat us any less because we were a small post in a small town.”
Shafer and his committee had to sell the post on the idea of investing in the gaming setup. It did, which also led to praise from Shafer. “For me, one of the big headlines was the trust that the post put into the E-Sports Committee. It’s a very forward-thinking idea,” he said. “But they entrusted us to do it. They showed an immense amount of patience as we learned in the process.”
Members of Regiment Gaming, of which The American Legion is the official veteran service organization, were on hand to help with the setup on June 9, as were staff from custom computer builder Paradox Customs.
The next day, Post 58 hosted its grand opening. The attendance at the event impressed Earl – as was seeing Post 58 embrace gaming. “The turnout was absolutely amazing,” he said. “Seeing an American Legion post launch a gaming room like this is surreal. It validates that this partnership between Regiment and The American Legion makes sense and is helping to modernize the Legion.”
Shafer said the event brought in a much-needed demographic and has continued to bring potential members to the post. “One of the things I noticed was is we attracted younger members. We got younger members to sign on the dotted line to join up for the Legion,” he said. “And Bunker 58 has been used every day since our event (July 11). It was used by veterans who had never stepped foot in our Legion before.”
Shafer, who also serves as post chaplain, heads up Post 58’s peer-to-peer (P2P) support program, which brings in veterans from the community to talk about any issues they may be dealing with, regardless of whether they are members of the post. He believes the success of that program helped pave the way for the instant success of Bunker 58, and he believes the post’s gaming program can provide a similar sense of community and support.
“So much of my time was me operating as a chaplain during our grand opening,” he said. “We had veterans telling me about multiple suicide attempts. More than one pulled me off to the side talking about how difficult it’s been during their transition (from the military). And some of those guys are becoming members.
“For me, our post represents Be the One just for that one day. This is a program that’s going to continue, that’s going to grow.”
Shafer points to data that he said supports the idea that gaming can provide a healthy outlet for veterans facing post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues resulting from their military service or struggles in the civilian world.
“I’m a graduate student, so I appreciate research,” Shafer said. “Over the past three years the National Institute of Health has put out statistics regarding e-gaming and the benefit of e-gaming for veterans with (post-traumatic stress disorder). The statistics note that e-sports conducted in a controlled environment staved off PTSD symptomology such as generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder through camaraderie, competition and accountability.
“I think one of the key factors in being in a controlled environment is when these guys sit down in front of the screen, they kind of forget about some of the issues that they have. And they’ve got other veterans standing watch, keeping an eye out.”
Post 58 scheduled the opening of Bunker 58 with an eye on the future. “We launched this in the summer because we wanted to get really good at it by the time the holidays roll around,” Shafer said. “Because most of our committee members know somebody who (has died by suicide). And for most of us, often that happened around the holidays. That seems to be a really prime time for that depression to hit.
“So, we wanted to launch in July so that we could get really good at what we do and have a place ready and available for any veteran, whether they are in need or want to get around other veterans. We want to be there with a response.”
Earl believes that what Post 58 has done is the start of what other American Legion posts will begin doing. “What we did at Post 58 is what I envision most American Legion posts will look like in the next few years,” he said. “Gaming is not the ultimate answer that’s going to modernize this organization, but it for sure is very important and a step in the right direction.”
Shafer said seeing the idea of a gaming area at the post to what Bunker 58 has become is “humbling. It’s humbling that our post would hear our vision out. It’s humbling that our post would financially support it. It’s humbling to know that I can reach out to a CEO of a major veterans organization and he’s going to reach right back out to me.
“It has such been so powerful. We’ve connected with a lot of people through Regiment. But our end goal is to do everything that we can to eliminate veteran suicide.”
Any American Legion posts wishing to start a gaming program through Regiment can contact Chris Earl at chris@regiment.gg.