Behind The Shield

Colonel Matthew F. Coleman is the Director of Safety for Air Force District of Washington (AFDW), headquartered at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. AFDW Safety provides Major Command-level management and oversight of occupation, weapons, and flight safety programs for Homeland Security Operations in the National Capital Region, Joint Operations, and Air Force Elements (AFELM) worldwide. AFDW’s safety office support extends to AF personnel and resources assigned to Headquarters Air Force, Secretary of the Air Force, Field Operating Agencies, and AFELM worldwide that are not subordinate to a Major Command; which includes 33,000 military and civilian personnel assigned to 1,758 units stationed at 500 locations in 108 countries. AFDW Safety develops, organizes, administers, evaluates, and coordinates comprehensive Federal, DOD, and Air Force Occupational Safety and Health safety programs.Col Coleman enlisted in the Air Force in 1990 and entered the Space Systems Operations career field gaining experience with the Defense Meteorological Support Program, COBRA DANE, Space Control mission, and the National Reconnaissance Office. He was selected for a 2-year Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarship and separated as a Staff Sergeant in 1996. In 1998 Colonel Coleman received his commission and attended Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training the following year. His flight experience is with the KC-135R/T, KC-10A, E-11A, C-17A, E-3G as well as the UH-1N and has accumulated over 1,200 combat flight hours during seven deployments supporting Operations ENDURING FREEDOM, IRAQI FREEDOM, INHERENT RESOLVE, and FREEDOM’S SENTINAL. Col Coleman also led a provisional Group while forward deployed to the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, in support of Operation ALLIES REFUGE where he was responsible for the reception, care, and follow-on movement of nearly 57,000 Afghans during the Afghanistan Noncombatant Evacuation Operations. His command experiences were with the 15th Comptroller Squadron (Acting), Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, HI, the 92d Operations Support Squadron, Fairchild AFB, WA, and the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, where he served as the Deputy Commander. Col Coleman has worked at the squadron, wing, and headquarters-level to include the Joint Staff and is a fully qualified Joint Officer.

Phyllis O. Rogers is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in the State of Washington. Phyllis holds a Master’s Degree in Applied Behavioral Science, Family Systems Counseling, from the Leadership Institute of Seattle, Bastyr University. She has been a family therapist since 1998, serving hundreds of clients. In 2010, Phyllis opened inLife Clinic, LLC and serves as the Director. She created the name from the saying, Sometimes in life, everyone needs a little help. She specializes in working with police officers, firefighters, medics, and their family members who face a myriad of issues, including cumulative stress, PTSD, admin betrayal, anxiety, depression, critical incidents, OIS, LODD and relationship challenges. She is trained in EMDR and the Gottman Method for couples counseling. Phyllis also contracts with several agencies as a consultant working onsite with their peer support teams, Chaplains, wellness programs, officer involved shootings, critical incident stress defusings and debriefings.Due to her unique combination of training and personal experience with trauma, in 2008 Phyllis was asked to become a volunteer Police and Fire Chaplain for the City of Redmond, WA, where she served on the days she was not seeing clients. As a Chaplain, she supported police and fire personnel and their families, as they managed on-going stress, critical incidents, and traumatic experiences in their roles as first responders. Phyllis was also dispatched on scene to critical emergency situations in order to provide emotional support to individuals dealing with major trauma, life-threatening situations, or the loss of a loved one.Eventually, the Police Chief hired Phyllis to work on site at the agency. She is now the Police Resilience Coordinator for three police agencies and provides support to other agencies when requested. As a consultant, she is available to support officers through one on ones, facilitate critical incident stress debriefings, supervise the Peer Support Team and Chaplains, all with the goal of building resiliency throughout the agency.Phyllis has been a trainer and speaker for the Chaplain Academy, the International Conference of Police Chaplains, and been a featured speaker for trainings at many law enforcement, fire and EMS agencies, and other first responder events.Phyllis’ passion to help people through trauma was developed through her own personal tragedy. At the age of 34, her late husband was in a near-fatal car accident, leaving him in a vegetative state for 10 years. Phyllis became his caregiver while raising their three children alone, ages 3, 6 & 8 years. To provide for her family she returned to school, during the last few years of Scott’s life, to complete her undergraduate studies and obtain her Master’s Degree in Family Systems Counseling. Today, she finds meaning and purpose in her own painful journey by helping others deal with trauma.

Sean Lake is a former professional snowboarder, extreme sports manager and the co-founder of BUBS Naturals. In this second conversation we discuss the ripple effect of losing his lifelong friend and Navy SEAL Glen Doherty in Benghazi, the pursuit of the Congressional Gold Medal, moral courage, fighting for death benefits for future operators, how Glen's death inspired an alturistic supplement company and much more.Sean Lake grew up in Winchester, Massachusetts, before moving to Utah to become a professional snowboarder and general ski bum. Once he got that out of his system, he graduated from the University of Utah, using that degree to join Burton Snowboards, work as Shaun White’s Team Manager, and land a spot as the Director of Sports Marketing at DC Shoes.After decades in action sports marketing, Sean co-founded BUBS Naturals, a line of collagen peptides and other all-natural supplements that help athletes at all levels perform and feel their best. Sean named BUBS Naturals after his childhood best friend Glen “BUB” Doherty, a Navy SEAL who was killed in Benghazi, Libya on 9/11 in 2012. In addition to remembering Glen for the patriot he is, the BUBS ethos centers around the passionate and adventure-seeking life that Glen lived. Sean and the BUBS Naturals family further honor “Bub” by donating 10% of all profits to charities that support veterans.A devoted husband, father, and fitness fanatic, Sean now lives in Encinitas, California, where he can ride his bike to work and still do a quick surf check from the office.https://www.glendohertyfoundation.org/https://www.bubsnaturals.com/

Sean Lake is a former professional snowboarder, extreme sports manager and the co-founder of BUBS Naturals. We discuss his journey into winter sports, his lifelong friendship with Navy SEAL Glen Doherty, Glen's heroism defending American diplomats in Benghazi, how Glen's death inspired an alturistic supplement company and much more.Sean Lake grew up in Winchester, Massachusetts, before moving to Utah to become a professional snowboarder and general ski bum. Once he got that out of his system, he graduated from the University of Utah, using that degree to join Burton Snowboards, work as Shaun White’s Team Manager, and land a spot as the Director of Sports Marketing at DC Shoes.After decades in action sports marketing, Sean co-founded BUBS Naturals, a line of collagen peptides and other all-natural supplements that help athletes at all levels perform and feel their best. Sean named BUBS Naturals after his childhood best friend Glen “BUB” Doherty, a Navy SEAL who was killed in Benghazi, Libya on 9/11 in 2012. In addition to remembering Glen for the patriot he is, the BUBS ethos centers around the passionate and adventure-seeking life that Glen lived. Sean and the BUBS Naturals family further honor “Bub” by donating 10% of all profits to charities that support veterans.A devoted husband, father, and fitness fanatic, Sean now lives in Encinitas, California, where he can ride his bike to work and still do a quick surf check from the office.https://www.bubsnaturals.com/

Conrad Weaver is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, podcast host, speaker, producer, and director with a deep passion for telling impactful stories. With over a decade of experience in documentary filmmaking, Conrad has crafted powerful narratives that have taken him from the slums of Guatemala and orphanages in Ukraine to the halls of Congress on Capitol Hill, and beyond. His approach to filmmaking involves immersing himself fully in each project, gaining an in-depth understanding of the culture and subject matter to authentically capture the story. Conrad's work has garnered numerous prestigious awards, including a Regional Emmy Award. He is also the host of the First Responder Wellness Podcast, and his current film project, PTSD911, has received critical acclaim and multiple awards. Through his films and podcast, Conrad aims to inspire others to live a life of purpose and meaning.PODCAST: First Responder Wellness Podcast available wherever Podcasts are downloaded.FILMOGRAPHY(2022) PTSD911 - Documentary Feature - Producer, Director, EditorFirst Responders sign up to serve; they risk their lives and their mental health to respond to someone’s worst day. Who will rescue them? (2019) Bluebirds of Antietam - Documentary Short - Director, Editor. A short documentary film that tells the story about one couple’s efforts to save the Eastern Bluebird at the Antietam National Battlefield. (2018) Heroin’s Grip - Documentary Feature - Producer, Director.Stories from the front lines of the opioid crisis. (2016) Thirsty Land - Documentary Feature - Producer, Director.Thirsty Land is a documentary film that tells the story about extreme drought, agriculture, & the water crisis in the western United States and how these challenges impact farmers, urban communities, and the environment.(2014) Great American Wheat Harvest - Documentary Feature - Producer, Director. Winner of the 2015 Mid-America Regional EMMY® Award: Best DocumentaryThe story of hard-working harvesters who travel from the heart of Texas to the Canadian border harvesting the wheat that feeds our great country and the world.

Dan Skoczylasis a consultant, trainer and author specializing in active shooter response training, investigations, security and background investigations. We discuss his journey into law enforcement, working with a Federal Task Force around 9/11, the national recruitment crisis, the importance of thorough background checks, the financial cost of removing a single bad employee, school safety and so much more.Dan spent 25 years in law enforcement at the local and federal level. He uses his expertise to train individuals and companies to be ready and prepared, should the need arise, to deal with an active shooter event. In 2019, Dan authored and published his first book, entitled, "If You're Looking for a Victim... Keep Looking!" The book details a civilian response to the active shooter and offers insight into how individuals and companies can prepare successfully.In 2015, Dan and a panel of experts developed Hawkeye Security Active Shooter Response. Hawkeye provides consultation and training for companies and individuals to mitigate workplace violence. Hawkeye Security's flagship training classes address Active Shooter Response preparedness. Dan is certified as a Workplace Violence Prevention Specialist through the National Association of Safety Professionals.Dan worked all facets of the law enforcement spectrum to include patrol, tactical narcotics/gang officer, Federal Task Force Officer, Detective, Patrol Sergeant and Patrol Lieutenant. Dan was one of the founding principals of CLS Background Investigations in 2001 and currently holds the position of Business Manager. Dan has extensive experience with pre-employment and tenancy screening and has provided educational presentations to numerous groups on related topics.Dan is also one of the principal founders of Makton Investigations, a licensed private investigations agency in the State of Illinois (115-00-1996 & 117-00-1426). Dan has experience ranging from criminal narcotics cases to homicide, smuggling and money laundering.

Todd McCullough is a former University of Florida football player, strength and conditioning coach and the founder of TMAC Fitness. We discuss his journey into college athletics, the injuries that ended his career, finding yoga, training the tactical athlete and so much more.

Geoff Lassers is a professional Firefighter, Paramedic, educator, and content creator. Mike Mattern, a professional firefighter and paramedic. In addition, Mike is a Peer Support Team Member for his fire department and the FST5 Program. Manisha Leary, LMSW, is the FST5 Program Manager and a clinical psychotherapist specializing in trauma. Frontline Strong Together (FST5) was created in support of Police Officers, Fire Fighters, EMS, Correctional Officers, 911 Dispatchers, and their immediate families. FST5 is the result of collaboration between mental health professionals and first responders. This project aims to help first responders and their families overcome invisible injuries and stress caused by the difficulties of their professions, and to improve the quality of their life and prosperity.The state of Michigan provided a grant and selected Wayne State University – Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, to partner with first responder professional unions and other interest groups to address the mental health of our first responders across all 83 Michigan counties.Geoff and Mike are also the co-hosts of the Minds on the Frontline Podcast.

James Wilks is a mixed martial artist best known for winning Season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter. He also serves as a combatives trainer for government agencies including the US Marshals, US Marines, US Army Rangers and US Navy SEALs. He is the also the man behind the documentary "The Game Changers". We discuss the wisdom of Bruce Lee, the disease reversing capabilities of a plant based diet, hollisitic farming practices, training the elite warfighter and much more.

Andrew "BETY" Nicoletti has over 25 years of flight experience in both the Law Enforcement and the Military operating Special Mission sets. He has lead aircrew in combat and at home serving the country and the public flying for the Army, Air Force and Law Enforcement Aviation Units. His expertise and desire to provide the highest level of elite Instruction is the driving force at Helo Tac. https://helotacair.com/