Episode 6 : Our mystery guest is revealed to be "EZ PETE" - Peter Gaudet, Company E-4

We talk to EZ Pete Gaudet, company E-4 "GO NAKED" - He tells the story of first coming to West Point at 10 years old and feeling an immediate connection to the place. As he will learn later in life, his biological roots run deep to West Point. EZ Pete reflects on the close relationship his parents had with all of our E-4 classmates - as was the case being from Westchester County NY, the Gaudet home was a frequent place of respite. They had a toga party where Pete's father dressed up in a toga. Pete remembers company mate Dr. Rusty Davidson who is one of our classmates who suffered from depression and died by suicide. Rusty was a leading spinal surgeon in the Army, he literally saved lives and limbs in his work. The tragic event of Rusty's death was pivotal in Pete's life as he directed much of his energy and financial resources toward combating veteran suicide.

Pete is co-founder of Provetus a peer mentoring program that helps Veterans and Service Members successfully transition from the military to the civilian sector within five critical domains: Employment, Housing, Family/Legal Issues, Social/Community/Physical, Medical. We were joined by USMA '98 grad Dr. Joe Geracci who is also a Provetus co-founder. Together, we face into the challenges of veteran suicide and what it means for our class. We learn there are 3 primary risk factors to compound the danger of suicide: 1) Lack of connection to a purpose/mission 2) Loss of cammraderie 3) Mental Illness.   

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