CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A Clay County man says farming has helped him cope with his severe post traumatic stress disorder, following his military service.
Eric Grandon works through a program called West Virginia Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture. He said the program aims at getting veterans back to work, while helping them recover by starting their own agribusiness.
“Agriculture has basically saved my life,” said Grandon. “It’s given me a reason to get up in the morning and a purpose in life now.”
Grandon joined the U.S. Army at 19 years old. He was stationed in California and then was deployed to Turkey and spent most of the next two and a half years in the Middle East. His wife Mary told the Market Bulletin she knew something was wrong when he came home.
“He didn’t want to socialize,” she said, after he left the Army in 1995. “He seemed lost and it was hard for him to talk about what he’d been through.”
Grandon went to counseling for some time. He also joined the Coast Guard, went to college and became a physical therapy assistant at Charleston Area Medical Center.
Later on, the events of Sept. 11, 2001 changed Grandon’s life, but this time, in a huge way. He was sent back to the Middle East for a year, but when he came back to the States, the images he saw stayed with him.
Flashbacks left Grandon disabled in 2011.
That’s when he decided he needed to make a change in his life, so he joined Veterans to Agriculture.
“We try to actively recruit veterans, like myself, because agritherapy is huge right now. There’s a lot of guys of there, just like me, that we could help,” he said.
The program includes beekeeping, vegetable growing, livestock and more. Grandon said currently they have nearly 50 members with brand new agribusinesses.
Free classes are also offered for veterans that focuses on business training.
Grandon said they encourage anyone to get involved, not just veterans.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a veteran or not,” he said. “If you have any depression or anxiety, PTSD, agriculture can help. It is very therapeutic to bring something to life.”
Currently, Grandon spreads the word about his story and how gardening has helped heal his wounds.
For more information on the West Virginia Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program, visit their Facebook page or contact the state Department of Agriculture.