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Today's first Guest is retired US Navy Veteran, Matthew Simoni.
Matt Simoni served four tours in the Navy from 2006 to 2016. He was a part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation New Dawn. When he returned from overseas in 2016, he decided to help other combat veterans like himself assimilate back into civilian life, and formed a not-for-profit called Bravo Foxtrot United Veterans Inc.
Simoni, and his partner, Jade Pinto, help veterans through holistic therapy, meditation in motion, guided meditation, planting and gardening work, working with animals, and integrated therapy as a lifestyle.
Simoni met Pinto at the tattoo shop she was working in at the time. He was in a dark place, suffering from PTSD, and he got tattooed frequently as a way to express his pain. Pinto and Simoni formed a friendship which led them to their path today.
The organization recently produced a documentary film called “Long Island’s Forgotten Heroes,” in partnership with Hazy Sun Productions, which tells the stories of homeless veterans—some living in the woods—and their struggle in civilian life.
PART 2:
Our second Guest Retired Army Lt. Dan Guida, a proud Vietnam Veteran and a Hero Card Holder at Jake’s 58!
Dan Guida grew up in Nassau County and currently lives in Wading River. His mother had nine brothers, of which seven served in the military during World War II. Since his youth, Dan learned the importance of national service from stories that were presented to him by his uncle. After high school, he was granted a temporary military deferment in order to attend St. John’s University in Jamaica, Queens, but a short time later, he decided to leave school and was drafted into the Army.
With some college behind him, Dan was accepted into the Army Officer Candidate School and became a second lieutenant. Today, many people cheerfully refer to him as “Lieutenant Dan,” a reference to the film “Forrest Gump.” We’ll talk more about that!
From 1967 to 1968, Dan served in Vietnam with the I Corps. As an officer, he was responsible to direct tanks, armored personnel carriers and the trucks that operated in South Vietnam, not too far from Da Nang and the demilitarized zone.
Later, Dan used the GI Bill to attend Nassau Community College and Hofstra University, where he majored in accounting. He worked as an accountant for a good part of his life, and he still happily holds financial responsibilities today for VFW Post 6249 in Rocky Point.
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