Warrior Spirit Project

We are an all-volunteer organization of peers connecting with veterans, first responders, and their families by reaching out to them individually and within their existing communities, taking our programs and services to a variety of settings and collaborating with other service-oriented groups. Our primary program is Steady Warriors Trauma-Informed Yoga and Meditation, which addresses and helps mitigate the affects of trauma and chronic stressful experiences with an embodied approach as opposed to a traditional cognitive approach. We focus on building community and developing supportive relationships with the veterans and first responders in our programs. In everything we do, we meet participants where they are in their physical, social, emotional, and spiritual lives.

We have evolved over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic to a hybrid model of virtual and in-person options, including our peer-focused Warrior Spirit Project 200-hour Trauma-informed Yoga Teacher Training Program (YTT). We recruit and offer priority registration to warriors and their families, limiting enrollment to 10 to keep the community small and cohesive throughout the year-long training. Warriors in this program not only learn how to lead their peers in this specialized form of yoga and meditation, but also learn how to recognize the need for self-regulation in themselves and to implement strategies that enhance their own personal growth and well-being.

Our Needs

Scholarship funds for warriors enrolling in the YTT - Full tuition is $2500, which includes all books and materials. Since we are an all-volunteer organization, no incoming tuition is used to pay staff. Any net balance is designated for our Training and Education fund. This fund provides ongoing professional development opportunities for our active volunteer Steady Warriors teachers. We especially prefer that all of our teachers be trained in Integrative Restoration (iRest) meditation, an evidence-based meditation widely accepted in the VA medical system as a complementary treatment modality.

Yoga Gear Issue - We intend to provide a full gear kit of yoga mat, blanket, blocks, and eye pillow to first-time participants in any of our specialized workshops throughout the year, in order to encourage and facilitate continued practice at home. These workshops cover topics such as Yoga for Resilient Couples, Resilient Warrior Kids/Teens, Resilience Go Bag Strategies, and Steady Warriors Basic Training. The cost of each gear kit is approximately $60.