Who We Are
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BACKGROUND In 2013, Nate Bocker, an active duty US Army sergeant, decided that he would like to give back to the wounded veteran community by sharing a craft that he loved – bladesmithing. While knife making in general is common using stock removal (the grinding of pre-cut material), the art of forging an unshaped piece of steel is not as common. Nate felt that teaching a craft that both gave these soldiers a sense of accomplishment, as well as a skill set that could be used in life, he could do just a little bit to help. In October of 2013, Blade Therapy (aptly named by his first student) was born. Each student started with a bar of steel, which they hand forged, shaped, ground and sanded. They then made the handles from blocks of assorted wood and other materials. Finally, they made their sheaths, either from leather or Kydex. By October 2014, the Blade Therapy group had grown, and 15 students had successfully completed at least one knife, with many of them completing more. Beyond the completion of knives, more things were forged- bonds. It was also soon evident that this operation had grown beyond the garage and his private funding. That is when Resilience Forge began to take shape. Resilience Forge started in NC July of 2015 as a result of Kyle Gahagan seeing the need to expand the work that Nate started in VA. The mission and goal of Resilience Forge, Inc. remain the same but expand the support to the NC Veterans. If you would like additional information regarding the program, please call Kyle at 336-467-1244 or visit www.resilienceforge.org |
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MEDICAL
Resilience Forge works with Doctors and rehabilitative specialists to ensure that our program provides physical benefit to veterans recovering from all manner of injuries, ensuring best practices and accommodations for each student's needs. SKILLS The instructors at Resilience Forge each offer years of experience in working with hand-tools and powered equipment to shape and form metal, and often operate their own business beyond the time they donate to these rehabilitative activities. MISSION To foster a resilient spirit among wounded warriors, soldiers, veterans, and their families by introducing them to skills associated with smithing and related craft, and to create resources for teaching these skills, with the greater community in mind. |