About this item
An Iraq War veteran's riveting journey from suicidal despair to hope After serving in a scout-sniper platoon in Mosul, Tom Voss came home carrying invisible wounds of war - the memory of doing or witnessing things that went against his fundamental beliefs. This was not a physical injury that could heal with medication and time but a "moral injury" - a wound to the soul that eventually urged him toward suicide. Desperate for relief from the pain and guilt that haunted him, Voss embarked on a 2,700-mile journey across America, walking from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to the Pacific Ocean with a fellow veteran. Readers walk with these men as they meet other veterans, Native American healers, and spiritual teachers who appear in the most unexpected forms. At the end of their trek, Voss realizes he is really just beginning his healing. He pursues meditation training and discovers sacred breathing techniques that shatter his understanding of war and himself, and move him from despair to hope. Voss's story will give inspiration to veterans, their friends and family, and survivors of all kinds.
About the Author
Tom Voss served on active duty in the United States Army for three years, from 2003 to 2006. Tom served with the 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, an element of the 1st Brigade 25th Infantry Division, one of the Army's first Stryker Infantry Brigades. He served as an infantry scout in the battalion scout-sniper platoon.In October of 2004, after 20 months of training with his unit, Tom was deployed to Mosul, Iraq to support Operation Iraqi Freedom. While in Iraq, Tom was proud to participate in hundreds of combat missions, convoys, security patrols, raids, area clearance operations, and humanitarian relief operations including providing security for the first democratic elections in Iraq since the invasion. Tom separated from the Army in 2006 with an honorable discharge.After returning home, Tom struggled with reintegration and was diagnosed with PTSD in 2008. After being pushed to the brink of suicide, Tom knew he had to do something to help himself heal. In 2013, he teamed up with fellow combat veteran Anthony Anderson to plan and execute a 2,700-mile trek from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Los Angeles, California. This journey was captured on film by Emmy®-nominated documentary filmmaker, Michael Collins. The film, which has enjoyed theatrical releases in New York and Los Angeles and been screened at dozens of film festivals nationwide, is called Almost Sunrise. The world premiere of Almost Sunrise was at the 2016 Telluride Mountain Film Festival, where it won the Moving Mountains Award. It was also shown at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival in New York City and the American Film Institute (AFI) Film Festival in Washington D.C. Almost Sunrise has since won multiple film festival awards and has played at over 150 community screenings across the country. In November, 2017 Almost Sunrise was broadcast nationally as part of the P.O.V. documentary series on PBS, resulting in an Emmy nomination. For his work empowering veterans to overcome moral injury, Tom has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, National Geographic Adventure, Men's Health, USA Today, Fox News, the Chicago Tribune, Epoch Times, and the Hollywood Reporter. Tom has given presentations and lectures about his journey of hope and healing at Google, the Aspen Ideas Festival, New York University, the Medical College of Wisconsin and United States Congress.
