Thriving After The Fire

25/07/2026

🎉 PAM DUNCAN IS BACK!!! 🎉

After spending much of the past three months in and out of the hospital, our wonderful Pam is finally feeling healthier and getting back on her feet—and we could not be more grateful! 💜

Pam is 100% volunteer dedicating so much of her time and talent to help edit and produce the incredible survivor-story videos for Thriving After the Fire. Her creativity, dedication, compassion, and behind-the-scenes work bring these powerful stories to life. Our podcast simply would not have the amazing videos it does without her!

Pam, we absolutely adore you. We have missed you more than words can say, and we are incredibly thankful that you are feeling better. Your health and happiness mean so much to all of us, and having you back is truly something to celebrate!

Please help us shower Pam with love and let her know just how appreciated she is! 💜🔥🦋

And now that our amazing video producer is back, stay tuned—we have a powerful new survivor story coming your way very soon! Edward Rinehart

20/06/2026

🚨 EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

📅 August 19, 2026
📍 North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce

You are invited to be part of the inaugural Arkansas Wellness Summit: From 49th to 1st — a first-of-its-kind event bringing together leaders from healthcare, education, government, business, and community organizations to help shape the future of wellness in Arkansas.

This event is by invitation only and reserved for:
✅ Arkansas Wellness Network Verified Providers
✅ Arkansas Wellness Network Approved Businesses
✅ Invited state leaders and community partners
✅ At least one representative from each Arkansas city

We have some BIG announcements planned!!

This is the beginning of a statewide movement.

We believe Arkansas can become a national leader in wellness, and we want YOU to be part of the conversation and the solution.

The future of wellness in Arkansas starts here.

19/06/2026

I want to sincerely thank the UAMS Brain Injury Program for featuring my story in BrainWaves Magazine. More importantly, thank you for trusting me to help lead what started as a small eBook club and has now grown into a national support network with members joining us from Arkansas, California, Alaska, and everywhere in between.

What I didn't expect was that through this journey, I would find a part of my tribe I never knew existed.

If I'm honest, there have been many times I questioned whether I should share my story at all. I've felt embarrassed by my divorce, by not having been able to see my military career through to the traditional retirement versus the disability retirement. I've struggled with imposter syndrome. My injuries aren't obvious to most people. I wasn't in a headline-making explosion. I don't have a dramatic movie-worthy story.

To the average person, I probably look perfectly healthy.

But brain injuries, PTSD, chronic pain, vision loss, stomach issues for 18 years and the invisible wounds many Veterans carry after service don't always announce themselves. Sometimes the hardest battles are the ones nobody can see.
I am just an ordinary Veteran who came home carrying more than I realized, trying to figure out how to rebuild a life while helping others rebuild theirs.

What the UAMS Brain Injury Program, the book club members, and this incredible community have taught me is that our stories matter—not because they are extraordinary, but because they are real. We all have a story. WE are Thriving After The Fire , WE are Reinventing Ourselves!!!

Thank you to every survivor, caregiver, Veteran, and friend who has shared part of your journey with us. You have helped me heal as much as I hope I've helped you. And officially today, we are launching the Veteran and First Responders eBook Club!

Survival got me here.

Purpose keeps me going.

And people like you give me hope. ❤️

04/05/2026

25/04/2026

On 24 April 2004, Camp Taji, Iraq, the 39th Support Battalion lost four members in an early moring rocket and mortar attack. The attack actually came in two seperate vollies, 30 minutes apart. Soldiers had just been given the all clear to leave their bunkers from the first volly, and were conducting accountability, when the second volly impacted the housing area for the Support Battalion. SSG Stacey Brandon, CPT Arthur L. Felder, CW3 Patrick W. Kordsmeier and SSG Billy J. Orton died during the attack. This was the single greatest loss of life in one day for the Arkansas National Guard since the Korean War.

A tribute to the fallen heroes of the 39th Infantry Brigade (OIF 03-04)
In Honor of the Fifteen Soldiers of the Arkansas National Guard
Who Served with the 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team
During the Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003–2004 Deployment
And Gave Their Lives in Service to Our Nation.

A tribute to the fallen heroes of the 39th Infantry Brigade (OIF 03-04)In Honor of the Fifteen Soldiers of the Arkansas National GuardWho Served with the 39t...

24/04/2026

A tribute to the fallen heroes of the 39th Infantry Brigade (OIF 03-04)
In Honor of the Fifteen Soldiers of the Arkansas National Guard
Who Served with the 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team
During the Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003–2004 Deployment
And Gave Their Lives in Service to Our Nation.