Gold Stars and Stripes

On this episode of Gold Stars and Stripes we have two wonderful guests who are the founder and support staff of the Pillar Foundation. Teresa Shick is the Founder of The Pillar Foundation. She was a military spouse of 19 years to her husband Jerry, who is a Retired Navy SEAL that served his country honorably for 24 years. Teresa served alongside her husband as Ombudsman at Naval Special Warfare Development Group. During her time as Ombudsman, Teresa advocated and supported command families, surviving spouses, and upheld the foundation of those who serve the home-front for seven years. She has also volunteered and devoted her time and spirit to various military and NSW charities, foundations and fundraising events. Her unwavering dedication to our country's military families and spouses cannot go unnoticed.  Teresa's position as Ombudsman shaped her ability and understanding to help and aid people in times of crisis and uncertainty. She quickly realized that connection and stable support is key. Teresa then received a certificate in Nonprofit Management and used her skills and applied knowledge to create The Pillar Foundation. The Pillar Foundation is a nonprofit that addresses the needs of the Naval Special Warfare spouse, after service. Our mission is to provide a support network to spouses of transitioned Naval Special Warfare service-members; to share resources, to mentor and guide newly transitioned wives into the civilian world by holding retreats and garnering a database of sisterhood to reconnect state to state. Further objective is to assist with the needs of the spouse educationally or with entrepreneur endeavors.  Teresa's passion and purpose aims to alleviate and reduce the stress of retirement, transition and relocation by offering a sisterhood that will maintain the relationships made and support systems acquired to the pillars of our NSW military families well after time served has ended. Teresa and Jerry moved home to the great state of Texas in 2017.  They currently reside in Tyler, Texas with their 4 children and have been married 24 years.They happily continue to serve in faith, duty and contribution to their country, community and church. www.thepillarfoundation.com

Rebecca Lincoln is a licensed general contractor and interior designer. She started and runs a design build boutique firm called, Coastal Dwelling in Coronado, California. Rebecca is Gold Star surviving fiancé of Remington Peters who was killed in 2017 during a Navy Leap Frog Memorial Day jump in NYC.

On this episode of Gold Stars and Stripes, Tara Crenshaw and Brooke Keating interview Donna Chang who is the President of Hope Biosciences Stem Cell Research Foundation out of Sugar Land Texas. She started her organization in 2020 to focus primarily on chronic conditions like arthritis, spinal cord injury, TBI, exc. Their mission is to unlock the potential of regenerative medicine, bringing new hope to patients by dramatically accelerating research.    

On this first episode of Gold Stars and Stripes your hosts Tara Blake Crenshaw and Brooke Clark Keating interview their good friend, Bre Kingsbury.   Bre founded a sponsorship group called, Team Bear within the Wreaths Across America organization. Wreaths Across America’s mission is to “Remember Honor and Teach.” Every December, at more than 2,500 National cemeteries, wreaths are laid on gravesites of the fallen servicemembers. This year, December 18th is National Wreaths Across America Day.  Bre has changed the course of this organization with raising over a million wreaths for the National cemeteries. This all came about because she has lost many friends in the SEAL community and this is her way of giving back to the community.  “Wreaths Across America would not be successful without the help of volunteers, active organizations and the generosity of the trucking industry, which offer invaluable support to WAA's mission to remember the men and women who served our country, honor our military and their families, and teach our children about our freedom and those who protect it.”   To learn more about Wreaths Across America you can visit:  www.wreathsacrossamerica.org   The goal of this podcast is to bring awareness to the unique challenges facing spouses in the military community and to the needs that come along with military life, while also extending beyond to spouses outside the military.