Meet Brian Johnson | Founder and President

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brian Johnson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brian, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
WarriorNOW is a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to ending Veteran Suicide. Our nonprofit currently serves Veterans impacted by addiction and mental health challenges by providing peer to peer mentoring, peer recovery services, and recreational therapies. Since we founded WarriorNOW in 2019 we have served over 2000 Veterans and their families. The impact of our organization is best said from the clients we serve so here is a quote:

Ben Wolfe “Being a mentor means being there for a vet struggling to fit back into an unstructured civilian life after years of service in a highly structured military life. I have found immense satisfaction in being there for these vets and helping them transition back into civilian life. Our brothers need us, and we need them!”

Todd Kramer WarriorNOW (WN) tackles the veteran suicide dilemma with mentor-ship, virtual buddy checks, recreational therapy and pro-socials. I have personally watched this non-profit save lives through this approach. It’s truly inspirational to watch the process! The nightly virtual “buddy checks” is an open forum for all Veteran’s to meet and just talk about whatever is on their mind. I personally know there are so many Veterans that are grateful for this forum. I have also attended some of the weekly bowling recreational therapies and everyone present is having a great time and you can just feel the healing in the room! The staff is not just friendly and knowledgeable of veteran issues, but they are all Veteran’s themselves, (or spouses of), which I think makes it all that much more effective. They even have a family services division that services the needs of the spouses which is huge!! WarriorNOW really does tackle the problem from all angles and I’m beyond proud to volunteer with such a needed cause.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
When I was in the military I sustained a severe back injury while in Iraq. I became highly addicted to pain killers and ultimately committed suicide several times. Luckily, I am still here and able to give back to society. I turned to photography as a form of therapy and it really did save my life. I started BrianJohnsonPhoto.com and turned my photography into a photography therapy that I provide to clients of WarriorNOW and the VA. For many years I have run my own photography studio and now focus on creating artwork and providing photography therapy to others.

I am most proud about the give back that we have done throughout the years. Our photo studio has given back to various nonprofits like Special Olympics, WarriorNOW, and the Honor Bell Foundation.

After my military service I became a local deputy sheriff with Arapahoe County Sheriff’s office in Centennial. The hardest part of my life was making a change to leave public service to focus on my recovery and get my head and body fit. Finding my purpose through photography has been one of the most joyous accomplishments of my life. I learned everything needed to start and maintain a business through this effort and that is what has led to the success of starting a nonprofit.

If I can bestow any wisdom on the world it is the fact that life continues. Regardless of the hardships you may encounter if you continue to hustle and continue to have faith in your product you will be successful. Keep going, no matter what. If you believe in your program or your abilities you will be successful. You are the keeper of your destiny.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Denver is a very interesting and fun city with lots to do. I enjoy anyplace where I can make pictures so places like Red Rocks for a hike, Daniels Park, Seven Falls, Cave of the Winds, Garden of the Gods are great places in nature that are fun. Union Station is by far one of my favorite city places to photograph.

Places to eat, now we are talking. We will have to eat at Beau Jos Pizza, the View House, and for some great food, drinks and live music we occasionally crash The Alley in Littleton.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
So many people deserve a shoutout for making WarriorNOW what it is today. Malinda Johnson and Todd Kramer are Co-Founders and have dedicated the past several years to building the program to the highest standards. Donald Maloy is our clinical director and with his guidance we have curtailed our peer to peer mentoring to give guidance with the understanding of addictions and mental health challenges. Tiffany Morgan is our CEO and she has created a robust training program alongside Tom Joyce for our mentors, Veterans, and family members. Watik Aleem is our COO and he has developed our mentoring program to be inclusive and motivated. Cameron Montgomery was one of our first clients turned volunteers and with Cameron’s assistance we were able to work more efficiently with Veterans impacted by the judicial system. Daniel Draper is a client turned volunteer who helped us create the nightly virtual buddy check.

WarriorNOW is a reality because of these and many others. Because of the support our organization now serves Veterans from Colorado Springs all the way to Weld County. Without the power of volunteers WarriorNOW would not be here.

Website: https://warriornow.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/warriornow/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/warriornow/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/warriornowinc

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WarriorNOWinc

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJJIxh8DxCan5HWaD0bTu2Q