Patton Veterans Project Offering Unique Opportunity in Montana
The grandson of legendary US Army General George Patton recently hosted an event in Montana, and I heard from fellow veterans that it was incredible. If you missed out, the Patton Veterans Project has a unique opportunity for Montana veterans very soon.
Ben Patton, grandson of General George Patton, shared the transformative mission of the Patton Veterans Project with us on the radio Tuesday morning. Inspired by his grandfather and father, Ben founded the project 14 years ago to empower veterans through storytelling. We talked about an upcoming free workshop in Montana, set for May 16-18 at Montana State University Billings, designed to connect veterans through the art of filmmaking.
Ben explained how the Patton Veterans Project brings together 18 veterans, many isolated in rural areas like Montana and Wyoming, for a weekend of creative collaboration.
Guided by top filmmakers, including an Oscar winner, participants craft short, narrative films that reflect their experiences. These films, often therapeutic, help veterans process trauma and reconnect with their communities.
Ben Patton: "A lot of them up in Montana and Wyoming are isolated and hard to reach, and a lot of them aren't really enrolled in any kind of care, and in many cases don't look out for themselves. But what we do is we hold workshops on the weekend for about 18 vets at a time. I bring top filmmakers together. One of my filmmakers that will be there at next week's workshop is an Oscar winner. And so these are, these are high quality people. And so vets come together, they don't know each other, and over the course of a weekend they get to know each other, and they create narratives to kind of empower and connect them with one another. And they make films, and those films a lot of times have a redemptive, often therapeutic quality about them, and they're very, very powerful."
With me being a post-9/11 veteran myself, we talked about the power of veterans telling their story. We recalled Montana’s Ben Steele, a Bataan Death March survivor who found healing through art.
To register for the event, scan the QR code below or contact Mike Leeman at (970) 657-5500 or workshops@pattonveteransproject.org.
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