What happens when a community is stretched past its limits?

Military spouses live in a unique tension: deeply tied to the institution, yet often left without a voice in its decisions. Their wellness reflects not just individual resilience, but the health of the entire military community.

In this episode of Restored, Corie Weathers speaks with Evie King, president of InDependent, about groundbreaking research she co-led with the University of Texas on military spouse wellness. Their findings reveal the cost of compounding stress, the reality of isolation, and the essential role of community in healing.

But this conversation doesn’t stop at the data. Evie later came back to re-answer two questions — more honestly, more vulnerably — and issued a sobering warning: if cultural dynamics don’t change, the system risks collapse.

Together, Corie and Evie explore what it takes for individuals, families, and institutions to find peace in the midst of ongoing conflict. And why community is not optional — it is the key to survival and restoration.

Find out more about. Independent, their research, and programming here: https://in-dependent.org/

If you have a story of your own about reconciliation, transition, or choosing peace, record a short voice memo and send it to corie@corieweathers.com or find all links here: https://linktr.ee/corieweathers

In this episode of Restored, Corie Weathers speaks with author and filmmaker Victoria Kelly, and producer/director Beatrice "B" Becette, the creators of the documentary Atomic Echoes: Untold Stories of World War II.

Their journey began when Karin Tanabe and Victoria discovered that their families were connected by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki — one as an American medic sent into the ruins, the other as a Japanese educator helping rebuild after the war. Together with producer Beatrice Becette, they set out to uncover the forgotten voices of the Japanese atomic bomb survivors and the American atomic veterans who lived in the aftermath.

Through shared storytelling, their work explores how reconciliation begins — not through politics, but through listening, empathy, and remembering.

This conversation reminds us that peace isn’t just the absence of war — it’s the hard, human work of facing history, honoring grief, and choosing hope.

• The surprising connection that brought Karin and Victoria together

• What it means to reconcile personal and national histories

• The unseen legacy of America’s atomic veterans

• How Beatrice helped translate pain into purpose through filmmaking

• Why remembering is an act of peace

• Click HERE for "Atomic Echoes" Trailer

• Click HERE to WATCH "Atomic Echoes"

• Click HERE for Victoria Kelly and Karin Tanabe’s Bios

  Click HERE for a Photo of Karin Tanabe and Victoria Kelly with the Flag worn by a Japanese Soldier, courtesy of Beatrice Becette for Blue Chalk Media

  Click HERE for Karin Tanabe's Website

  Click HERE for Victoria Kelly's Website

Their documentary Atomic Echoes brings together voices from Japan and the United States to reveal how the human stories of World War II still echo today.

Have a story of conflict, healing, or peace in your own life? Record a short voice memo and send it to restored@corieweathers.com — your story might inspire others.

What do you do when two things you love pull you in opposite directions?

In this episode of Restored, Corie Weathers sits down with Joe Byerly, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and founder of From the Green Notebook, and Clint Boling, a former NFL player for the Cincinnati Bengals. Both men faced defining crossroads in their careers — moments where they could push for one more tour, one more play, one more shot at glory. But each realized the cost was too high.

Joe’s decision came after 20 years in uniform, leading through wars, deployments, and the heavy responsibility of command. Clint’s came in the form of a life-threatening blood clot that forced him to consider whether football was worth risking his future.

Their stories reveal a universal truth: the hardest battles are often inside us. Choosing between ambition and family, career and health, identity and transformation can feel impossible. Yet, as Joe and Clint show, choosing peace is not surrender. It’s courage. It’s the decision to align your values with your life and to finish one story well enough to begin another.

Join us for a conversation about conflict within ourselves, the cost of relentless striving, and the grit it takes to pivot toward what matters most.

If you have a story of your own about reconciliation, transition, or choosing peace, record a short voice memo and send it to corie@corieweathers.com or find all links here: https://linktr.ee/corieweathers

What does it take to feel whole again — especially after conflict?

In a world where conflict feels inescapable — at home, in our culture, and across the globe — Restored invites you to pause and ask: how do we work through it in a way that leads to peace?

Hosted by Corie Weathers, author of Military Culture Shift, Restored explores the hard, human work of peace. Each episode weaves together personal stories, expert insights, and cultural perspectives to uncover what it means to heal, reconcile, and grow stronger — as individuals and as communities.

From military life to everyday relationships, these are stories that remind us peace isn’t just the absence of conflict — it’s something we build, one choice at a time.

Be the first to hear Restored: Stories of Conflict, Healing, and Peace when it launches.

There were several ways I could have ended this series and many interviews I could have done, however, when Matt mentioned that I should end it with him interviewing me, it felt right. So... here I am. Here we are. We share my reflections on the project, where things go from here, and most importantly, the power of championing others- especially your spouse. Special thank you to SO MANY PEOPLE who have supported me throughout the years, too many to mention here. I hope you enjoyed the series and will share it with others.

The Final credits song is "Thank You" by veteran and friend James Corbin.

This podcast is based on the book Military Culture Shift by clinical consultant and SME on military family culture, Corie Weathers.

Order your copy of Military Culture Shift https://militaryfamilybooks.com/products/military-culture-shift-by-corie-weathers

Listen to Corie's Lifegiver Podcast https://corieweathers.podbean.com/

Find out more about how you can work with and contact Corie https://www.corieweathers.com

In the final chapter of Military Culture Shift, I reference a theory of reconstitution written by Stoney Portis, after he commanded the 3-61 CAV troops that survived the now historic Battle of COP Keating and needed to somehow become mission-ready again. Reading his reflection on what it took to wholistically serve the battle-weary troops who had earned every right to hang up the one tattered uniform they had left, I knew it was a case study on what it would take to reconstitute an entire culture as well. So I invited now LT COL Stoney Portis to join Matt and me in a discussion about their shared sacred space in hopes it could validate the sacred spaces in your own life, but also inspire the healing of us all.

Read Stoney's Paper on Reconstitution: https://www.corieweathers.com/wp-content/uploads/Stoneys-Paper.-full-1.pdf

Read about the Battle of Cop Keating here

Watch the movie "The Outpost": https://www.netflix.com/title/81276140?source=35

This podcast is based on the book Military Culture Shift by clinical consultant and SME on military family culture, Corie Weathers.

Order your copy of Military Culture Shift https://militaryfamilybooks.com/products/military-culture-shift-by-corie-weathers

Listen to Corie's Lifegiver Podcast https://corieweathers.podbean.com/

Find out more about how you can work with and contact Corie https://www.corieweathers.com

Final Credits song is "The Hard Way" by Moda Spira https://modaspira.bandcamp.com/track/the-hard-way

Over the course of writing Military Culture Shift and especially present in the last three episodes, the phrase “moral injury” has come up again and again. Brought into mainstream awareness by Jonathan Shay in the 90s and early 2000s, his first book Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character introduced moral injury as a distinct second syndrome from PTSD.

As progress continues to evolve on the individualized treatment modalities for PTSD and moral injury, the Afghanistan exit, and its eerily similar characteristics with Vietnam, brings up the question of "How does an entire culture heal when it feels betrayed and morally injured?"

Surely the Afghanistan veterans and families that came out of two decades of war are not destined to carry similar burdens as our recent Vietnam veterans have.

I asked our good friend and mentor, Dr. Timothy Mallard, Chaplain, and Assistant Professor and Director of Ethical Development at The United States Army War College, and subject matter expert on moral injury to sit down with me just 60 days out from his own retirement. Still on his own journey of healing from his response to the 9/11 attack at the Pentagon, he has been a pillar of strength, wisdom, and comfort for many over the last several decades.

Final Credits Song: "There Is Always Hope" by Human Is Alive, Kieldfal, Silent Travelers

Arch Bishop Tutu Forgiveness Project: https://youtu.be/-M8wrQXIZmQ?si=od2rKrmquYXoJbZj

Recommended resources from Dr. Mallard:

Veteran's Association: https://www.mirecc.va.gov/visn17/moralinjury.asp

Jonathan Shay: Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character: https://a.co/d/e9eOpf3

The (Twin) Wounds of War, by Timothy Mallard: https://providencemag.com/2017/02/twin-wounds-war-spiritual-injury-moral-injury/

The Moral Injury of the Cross, by Timothy Mallard: https://providencemag.com/2024/03/the-moral-injury-of-the-cross/

I will never forget the feeling that rushed over me when I heard about the Pineapple Express during August 2021. Scott Mann, a retired Lieutenant Colonel and former U.S. Army Green Beret joined with other veterans who resolved to fulfill their promises to the Aghan allies for protection.

The efforts of Scott and other veterans through the Pineapple Express and other civilian-led efforts were nothing short of heroic. But their commitment to find and fund their own way back to Afghanistan illuminated a whole other level of integrity, leadership, and “What right looks like”. Against the backdrop of what Gen Milley has since called a “Strategic failure”, the Pineapple Express shook me and many others in the country awake, revealing the startling breakdown of the institution’s hierarchy, a shift in the future of humanitarian aid, and the power of human kindness.

For more information on Scott Mann:

Website and "Last Out": https://scottmann.com/

Rooftop Leadership: https://rooftopleadership.com/

This podcast is based on the book Military Culture Shift by clinical consultant and SME on military family culture, Corie Weathers.

Order your copy of Military Culture Shift https://militaryfamilybooks.com/products/military-culture-shift-by-corie-weathers

Listen to Corie's Lifegiver Podcast https://corieweathers.podbean.com/

Find out more about how you can work with and contact Corie https://www.corieweathers.com

Final Credits song is "Rules of Engagement" by Anthony Wheeler / Maia Sharp with Songwriting with Soldiers. (https://songwritingwithsoldiers.bandcamp.com/track/rules-of-engagement)

Scott's Full testimony before Congress: