S2.E.44: VETWOD, dedication to all who have served at its finest

Today I am joined by Seb & Weezy from VETWOD where we pull back the curtain and take a look at how they got started, the why behind their mission and learn some awesome things about these two amazing people!

WHO’S BEHIND VETWOD

Kate Shumaker, aka Weezy @coachweez

I have worked in the fitness space since February 2016 – coaching CrossFit and serving as the Customer Success Manager of Throwdowns.com. Several years back, a good friend of mine told me that I had access to a platform that would make it easy to run a charity competition – the only thing in my way was me. I was so scared to do something without having a perfect plan orchestrated, but those comments stuck with me and inspired me to look for opportunities. I come from a long line of men who served in the Navy, and Throwdowns is veteran-owned, so when the idea struck it was a very easy call to make. I knew I wanted to partner with Seb after we worked together on his fundraiser event. I am so thankful he said yes!!! I am a wife and a mama (I actually gave birth to my son, Walt, just a few days before VETWOD 2019 kicked off). I still work in the fitness space today. Most people don’t know that VETWOD is just Seb and me. Yes, we have plenty of supporters and an amazing community, but it’s just me and him behind the veil! He is the “boots on the ground” as they say, and I handle the operational things behind the scenes. I am so proud of what we have accomplished this far, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us in the future.

Sebastian Paz, aka Seb @seb_felipe

I was born and raised in Colombia, South America by a single mother. We moved to the US a few months before 9/11, which forever changed my life. I played soccer in college and I also became a naturalized US citizen. After college, I served almost 8 years in the Air Force as a firefighter/EMT and as a flight medic doing AirEvac. I got out about year ago and very recently finished my Masters in Nursing, and I now work as a nurse in an Emergency Department. I am a husband and father of 2 kids – they are my main priority. VETWOD was born out of the need of our MIL/VET/First Responders to have a healthy outlet and a supportive community. Our MIL/VET/First Responders deal with daily trauma and challenges while serving and protecting our way of life and our future. Their loved ones are also affected. We know how powerful fitness and community can be to help in this journey. If we can help stop one person from committing suicide, if we can help one person manage their PTSD, if we can help one person overcome…. then all of our work was worth it. We do it FOR THE ONE.

How VW started:

Kate (Weezy) and I met a few years ago while I was deployed. I decided to throw a fundraiser fitness competition to raise morale and help us all to get through a holiday season away from home. In addition to raising morale, my goal was to raise money to buy equipment for our gym because everything we had was all old, run down, and we just didn’t have a lot. I reached out to Throwdowns.com (a company that provides registration and scoring for competitions around the world), and Weezy was the person on the other end. She was instrumental in helping me run the competition and was a huge supporter of that fundraiser. I was able to raise about $15K and buy a lot of gym equipment to leave that deployment location better than when I got there. The best factor about that venture was the friendship built with Weezy. Not long after I got home, she reached out about wanting to throw a “one-time event” that would benefit veterans and first responders that deal with PTSD, anxiety, suicide, transition challenges, and more, and she wanted us to partner. The one-time event was the beginning of VETWOD. Two years later, we are still driven by the same passion to serve those who have served us. We are here to stay and continue to serve our community. We are excited about 2020!