Service the Film: When Women Come Marching Home

With Sallie Culbreth, Patricia Lee Stotter, and BriGette McCoy

Airs Wednesday, February 27th 2013

Sallie Culbreth is the founder of Committed to Freedom – a non-profit organization that facilitates holistic empowerment and spiritual tools to help people move beyond abuse, exploitation, and sexual trauma, and provides adjunct services to helping professionals, agencies, and faith communities working with those who want to include spiritual concerns in their abuse recovery process. Her work and writings come from her personal experience of childhood sexual abuse and recovery. She holds a bachelor’s degree in pastoral ministries and a master’s degree in mental health counseling studies. She is a member of the American Psychological Association, American Association of Christian Counselors, and has received training in Critical Incidence Stress Management. She has authored several books and self-help workbooks and writes a weekly blog, Roadside Assistance.

An Emmy Award winning composer and writer, Patricia Lee Stotter lends her tremendous talents in TV, film and social media to furthering awareness of PTSD and Veteran reintegration struggles. Stotter first became interested in Veteran issues while working on a theatre testimonial project that discussed suicide rates among Vietnam Veterans. She has since worked to bring awareness to Veteran issues through True Rep, a repertory company that explores trauma and resilience through testimonial theatre and film, and fosters collaboration among actors, writers and humane service organizations. Her recent documentary, Service: When Women Come Marching Home, highlights challenges facing female Veterans as they transition from active duty to civilian life. For more, visit http://servicethefilm.com/index.php

BriGette McCoy served in the US Army from 1987 to 1991 and became an E4, communications specialist with top secret clearance. Since leaving the service she has had a variety of jobs including medical claims processor, insurance underwriter, bank card specialist and mortgage originator. Suffering from a back injury incurred while in the army and from the hidden disability of MST that got so out of control she lost my job and her house and ended up homeless with two children. She couldn’t get help until she understood what was wrong and that didn’t happen until she found the website VETS WOW. Through the women vets she met on line, she learned about MST and PTSD and with their support, was able to seek help at the VA.

This week we are busy promoting our upcoming event in Hot Springs, Arkansas that will take place on March 7th. Harvesting Happiness for Heroes, Committed to Freedom, and Service, the film, When Women Coming Marching Home are hitting the airwaves and Social Media to raise awareness about Military Sexual Trauma and Assault perpetrated from within the US Military. The funds raised at this event will be reinvested within the state of Arkansas to provide workshops jointly facilitated by HH4Heroes and CTF for Servicewomen challenged by MST/MSA and Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS). I want to encourage you to be part of this revolutionary new program in many ways by getting the word out, attending the screening of SERVICE if you are local or making a small donation that will underwrite a woman Vet in need of healing. To learn more about these issues and what we are up to take a look at my recent blog posting in the Huffington Post.