Dean Russell grew up hunting and fishing in the backwoods of upstate New York. Shortly after 9/11 and graduating high school, Dean joined the Navy and spent six years helping to defend our grateful nation. His time in the Navy gave him a sense of comradery and purpose. After 2 tours on the USS Nimitz and third in southern Iraq, Dean transitioned out of the Navy. He went to school at night while working a full-time job in the corporate world. After earning his MBA, Dean realized that the corporate is great, but he was lacking a real sense of purpose. A friend of his that served in the Army committed suicide after a long battle with PTSD. Dean felt there should have been more he could do to help. After learning about other programs out there, he saw a real need to get more involved as there just is not enough reach to these veterans.