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Convoy of Hope reaches people exactly where they are. Poverty and hunger have gained a devastating edge in rural communities. By partnering with local churches to offer resources, training, mentoring, and coaching, Convoy of Hope helps people effectively discover and implement solutions to the issues in their local context. Convoy believes increased presence and partnership with local leaders help strengthen and enrich entire neighborhoods and towns.

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By providing curricula and other resources to participating colleges, Convoy of Hope is preparing the next generation to address the world’s compelling challenges with help and hope.

Kevin Weaver is president/CEO and co-founder of The Warrior’s Journey, a faith-based organization that serves military personnel during active duty and beyond. Kevin, a U.S. Air Force veteran, recently visited with Hope Quarterly about Convoy of Hope.

HQ: What is the backstory of The Warrior’s Journey?

Kevin: After I completed my military service in Panama in 1987, my wife and I were invited to return to Panama to pastor a chapel on the U.S. base. In a few months, that grew from about 20 to 30 people to 150. That experience connected us to the deep needs in the military community.

My nephew was sent to Iraq and fought at Fallujah in 2004. He was among just eight men in his platoon who survived. When he came home in 2005, he contacted me and poured his heart out. That conversation confronted me with the many invisible wounds warriors endure. My nephew had survived physically, but he was deeply wounded emotionally.

Those experiences, and many others, came together when Mark Flattery — a friend leading a nonprofit called Network 211 — contacted me with the idea of beginning an outreach specifically designed to serve men and women in the armed forces. Since 2015, The Warrior’s Journey has been that outreach.

HQ: Convoy of Hope and The Warrior’s Journey regularly work together.

Kevin: Convoy of Hope’s heart to reach the poor and the undervalued connects directly with our mission; too many men and women in the military are marginalized. People aren’t aware of the challenges warriors face. We first connected with Convoy of Hope by manning a Veterans Tent at Convoy’s Community Events.

In 2020, we discovered thousands of soldiers could not go home during Christmas because of their training cycle. There were 580 at Fort Leonard Wood alone, just down the highway from our headquarters. Convoy helped us create a care package for each of them. Our team gave out each package in person on Christmas Day. People would just cry when we gave them their gift. It grew from those packages at Fort Leonard Wood in 2020 to more than 3,000 packages at multiple posts last year.

We opened an office in Germany four years ago where we serve about 200 military personnel each day. With Convoy’s help, we’ve also served about 3,500 Ukrainian refugees since the war in Ukraine began.

HQ: How does The Warrior’s Journey serve the military community?

Kevin: When a warrior contacts us with a need, we connect that man or woman with another warrior whose experiences match theirs — same gender, same military branch, same rank, and even the same area of deployment. A trained volunteer who can talk with that warrior specifically about his or her greatest needs. We can also connect that person with 72 other organizations that offer specialized help. We are endorsed by the Department of Defense, we’re helping more warriors every year, and the future is wide open.

HQ: What critical needs among veterans and soldiers do you hope people will take to heart?

Kevin: Here’s a tragic reality — while we grieve the loss of more than 7,000 of our men and women killed during the global war on terror since 9/11, more than 32,000 warriors have taken their own lives in that same time period. I’m glad to report that The Warrior’s Journey has carried out 1,700 successful suicide interventions.

The wounds warriors endure are often deep and unseen. That may be true for someone in your family. For the person sitting next to you at a coffee shop. For the leader at your job who looks confident and successful. They don’t let it out, and too often that pain completely wrecks their lives before anyone is aware of their need.