NAMI Homefront for Families & Friends of Veterans & Service Members
NAMI Homefront is a free online course for family, friends, and significant others of military service members and veterans. Parents, partners, adult children, and close friends are welcome!
The focus of the information is mental health & wellness, providing the resources you need to help yourself & your loved one as well as access to a community of peers who understand your experience. If your veteran / service member struggles with depression, anxiety, or PTSD, then NAMI Homefront will equip you to help.
Learn how to better understand and support your loved one — and better maintain your own well-being. Remember, you can’t pour from an empty cup!
Past participants have benefitted from the camaraderie & bonding with peers and knowing exactly what to look for, do, and where to go to help their loved one.
Available online for free, NAMI Homefront is easily accessible to anyone nationwide.
You are there for them — we are here for you.
In Their Words: Past Participant Testimonials
“We are still friends with everyone that was in the class. There’s always an open ear and an open heart and a shoulder to cry on if you need it.”
– Father of a veteran, after graduating from a NAMI Family-to-Family class held at a VA hospital"This training has been really helpful for me to process much of my own emotions. I am at a point now that being able to stop and look back at exactly how far we've come and being reminded of the painful past but positive changes was very empowering. Sometimes when we get stuck in the routine of moving on, we lose sight of how far we've come."
"I realized I saw signs and symptoms of PTSD but did not know how to handle my loved one — I know better how to handle situations."
“You realize that he will never be the same having been through war. I learned how to treat him more as an adult than as a hurt child.”
– Mother of a veteran, after graduating from a NAMI Family-to-Family class held at a VA clinic
What You Will Learn
NAMI Homefront is a free, six-session online education program that focuses on the unique needs of military and veteran communities, including post-deployment and post-discharge transitions.
Gain a better understanding of your loved ones’ experiences & mental health
Build a network of others with similar experiences
Improve your self-care as a care-giver
Access resources for your service member / veteran & yourselves, including federal, state, and local services
The trained teachers & facilitators of this course have personal connections & experience with military culture and know what it’s like to have a loved one living with symptoms of a mental health condition.
Join the Next Course
WHO: Family, friends, and significant others of military service members and veterans
WHEN: 6 Sessions
Saturdays @ 9 - 11:30 ET
WHERE: Zoom (online)
Free
No prerequisites — the only commitment is attendance. Participate at your level of comfort.
Meet Your Facilitators
Megan Castellano
Megan Castellano is the Executive Program Director for G-Connect at Guardian Revival. Megan holds her Masters degree in Public Administration, with a specialty in not-for-profit management from Pace University and an undergraduate degree in Psychology from SUNY Purchase. She has 30 years of experience in leadership positions in nonprofits.
For the past decade, Megan has served as the co-chair of the Suicide Prevention Task Force in Putnam County, NY. In addition, she was instrumental in the development of the Putnam County Vet2Vet program and a co-founder of FIRST LINE-both peer support programs for Guardians. Megan is a civilian but was named an honorary Veteran by the Putnam County Joint Veterans Council in 2019. She has also had several articles published on the topic of Veteran Suicide Prevention.
Questions? Reach out to megancastellano@guardianrivival.org
Pat Siano
Pat Siano has volunteered with NAMI since 2020, and was formerly the Chair Of The Board Of Directors for Organize Alabama! for four years. Throughout her life, she has focused on helping people, young and old, black and white, women and men, take control of their lives. Pat has taught formally in high schools, informally in communities and unions, and organizes people to exert their collective voices wherever she goes.
Pat holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics Education and a Master’s of School Counseling and Guidance Services, both from the University of Alabama.
NAMI Putnam County
NAMI Putnam County — the local organization of the National Alliance on Mental Illness — will offer the NAMI Homefront Education Program for the winter.
NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. Our volunteers, members, and leaders work tirelessly to raise awareness and provide essential education, advocacy, and support group programs for people in our community living with mental illness and their loved ones.
Upcoming Events at Guardian Revival
Guardian Revival is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization chartered to revive and preserve the mental health and well-being of veterans and first responders — our guardians — at no cost to them.
We offer a range of programs and organize free events for guardians (active & retired): Veterans, Active Military, Reserve, National Guard, Law Enforcement, Fire & Rescue, EMS, Dispatchers, Corrections, and Federal Agents.
Join us for outdoor adventures, music, peer support, and more — we offer both virtual and in-person events. Please RSVP to join an event. We hope to see you soon!
