U.S. veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder have a new possibility for therapeutic help — and it’s on the Big Island.
U.S. veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder have a new possibility for therapeutic help — and it’s on the Big Island.
Four veterans arrived Aug. 4 from Maui and the mainland for an inaugural five-day therapeutic retreat at The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls, a Big Island bed and breakfast near Hilo.
They received free flights, and stays, for the Darby Charles Black Memorial Fund kickoff adventure, and more veterans are expected to benefit in the years ahead.
PTSD can trigger flashbacks, nightmares and extreme emotional and physical reactions to trauma reminders, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The veterans attending the retreat installed the base for a memorial statue, assessed their own life journeys and helped focus retreat planning on future participants’ needs.
The memorial, a Buddha statue, honors the memory of Army Staff Sgt. Darby Black, a veteran and recipient of a Bronze Star who struggled with PTSD and died by suicide in February 2015.
Black went on more than 300 combat missions in Iraq as a machine gunner, served in Afghanistan and mourned his squad leader, who died from a rocket-propelled grenade.
“He saw a lot of action,” said Black’s father, Dave Black, describing his son as an outdoors lover, camper and social person.
Photos and military patches, which carry deep meaning in the military, were left with the statue by retreat participants to honor those who have died.
“I start hearing them talk, and it makes me feel like I have a connection with my son that I really need,” said Black, who is the inn’s safety and community manager and also leads its Kulaniapia Adventures team, which operates guided waterfall rappelling tours of Kulaniapia Falls.
Retreat participants served in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The retreat’s focal point is the chance to rappel the 120-foot Kulaniapia Falls, which participants performed Aug 5.
“I’ve done it one time, and it’s awesome,” said inn co-owner Lenny Sutton. “It’s a little scary.”
Dave Black, a veteran himself, is a celebrated climbing and survival author, according to his Rappel Maui bio.
He was hired to develop rappelling adventures for inn guests.
He approached 20-year inn operator Sutton and new co-owner Christophe Bisciglia (who’s in transition to become sole owner) with the idea of a veterans retreat.
Bisciglia, who rose to fame with Google, also founded tech companies Cloudera, which simplifies voluminous, complex data, and WibiData, which helps companies individualize customer service.
Black told Sutton and Bisciglia he’d accept a lower salary if they would host veterans with PTSD.
They liked the idea so much they started donating 3 percent of Kulaniapia Adventures profits to fund retreats for veterans with life-threatening PTSD. Kulaniapia Adventures charges $199 for a three-hour rappelling adventure.
Bisciglia hopes retreats will grow and that funding becomes self-sustainable.
However, he said, “I want to be helping the right number of people.”
Whether just a few per year or several monthly isn’t known yet. Bisciglia hopes retreat participants will help answer that.
“I really want to empower these folks that we brought out here,” he said.
Former Army Spec. AJ Wattier of southern Texas was among the first four retreat beneficiaries. He doesn’t know why PTSD affects him, unlike many vets who recognize a specific event or time period.
Wattier served with Darby Black in Afghanistan. He mourns Black and misses military camaraderie, he said.
“Over there, you’ve kind of got a sense of connection,” he said. “Here, you don’t … there’s no connectivity … .”
Veterans on retreat get “essentially put to work, doing things that will keep their minds and bodies busy so they’ll be tired and able to sleep at night,” Dave Black said.
The first PTSD retreat was privately funded.
Black personally prefers vet referrals than donations.
Bisciglia hopes for collaborations, such as companies that fly veterans in for retreats they sponsor.
“It takes balls to ask for help,” Wattier said. “But you’ve got to.”
Email Jeff Hansel at jhansel@hawaiitribune-herald.com.