Next Steps Forward with Dr. Chris Meek

Matthew Bocchi is a survivor of devastating loss, emotional and psychological trauma, and sexual assault after his father, John, lost his life during the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Matt then began speaking in front of high school audiences throughout the greater New York City area about his experiences. On this edition of Next Steps Forward, he joins program host Chris Meek to deliver his message of hope and perseverance. The awestruck reception that Matt has received led him to write his memoir, Sway, which is the first story told by a child of 9/11 and details his hell of going through addiction and how he eventually learned to cope with his crushing loss from one of the most tragic days in American history. Matt is in long-term recovery, with plans to continue writing and speaking about inspiration and resilience. Matt will offer insights on how to persevere through adversity and come out the other side stronger, as well as how to survive in the most difficult of circumstances. He will also speak to the importance of remembering those we have lost for how they lived and not only for how they died.

On this noteworthy installment of Next Steps Forward, program host Chris Meek is honored to be joined by Staff Sergeant Bryce Cherryholmes and double-amputee and Purple Heart Recipient Saul Martinez. SSgt Cherryholmes served faithfully for eight years in the United States Marine Corps. During his first deployment, Cherryholmes incurred an initial back injury that became much worse over time. Due to the back injury and subsequent surgery, he received a full medical retirement and was Retired from Active Duty. After retiring, SSgt Cherryholmes underwent spinal cord surgery which unfortunately, due to complications, left him paralyzed. Today, he serves as an Ambassador for the national veteran-focused nonprofit SoldierStrong, co-founded and currently chaired by Chris Meek, where he travels across the country to educate and advocate for the use of exoskeletons to assist those with Spinal Cord Injuries and Disorders and to share SoldierStrong's mission. Since being wounded and leaving the Army, Saul Martinez has been proud to serve as the Chief Program Officer of the Warriors & Quiet Waters Foundation in Bozeman, MT, an organization that guides veterans and their loved ones to thrive and find peace, meaning and purpose through fly fishing and other inspirational activities in nature. Martinez was inspired to move to Bozeman and work for the organization shortly after participating in a Warriors & Quiet Waters Foundation (WQW) Fishing Experience. Throughout the hour Cherryholmes and Martinez will share their incredible stories of service, how the work they are doing via veterans organizations has a direct positive impact on post-9/11 combat veterans and their loved ones, as well as why empathy, compassion and the power of overcoming are everyday drivers in their lives.

On this edition of Next Steps Forward, program host Chris Meek speaks with General George Casey and Dr. Joel Kupersmith, authors of "Supporting Veterans After 50 Years of the All-Volunteer Force and 20 Years of War: Ideas Moving Forward." The goal of their book and their wider work is to begin the important discussion regarding how best to treat and serve the veterans of the all-volunteer military which will have existed in the United States for 50 years next year. Dr. Kupersmith, the current director of Georgetown University Veterans Initiatives and pioneer of the world's largest health system genetic repository the Million Veteran Program, and General George Casey, a 41-year Army veteran and former commander of the Multi-National Force – Iraq, will discuss why veterans who volunteer for military service are different from those who were drafted and served, as well as the reasons that individuals are motivated to join our volunteer force to begin with. America's all-volunteer force has resulted in a very capable military but as the audience will discover, the absence of compulsory service has taken a toll on the culture of national service and the idea that citizens in a democracy have responsibilities as well as rights.

On the first anniversary of the United States' withdrawal from Afghanistan, program host Chris Meek speaks with Lyla Kohistany, an inclusion strategist and cultural intelligence advisor, on her thoughts about what the U.S. got right and what it got wrong about the withdrawal. Lyla began her career in 2001 as a U.S. Navy Surface Warfare Officer stationed in Japan. Born in Kabul and a refugee of the Soviet conflict, the attacks on 9/11 prompted her to transfer into the Intelligence community where she served as a Counterterrorism Analyst in Afghanistan working alongside U.S. and NATO Special Operations Forces (SOF). Upon separating from the military, she consulted for the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, and U.S. Operations Command (USSOCOM). Lyla is the co-founder and director of two national nonprofits: PROMOTE, which is focused on innovation through inclusion in national security, and Honor the Promise, which is focused on long-term refugee resilience in the U.S. Lyla will speak about her own experiences as a refugee, her family's difficulty integrating into society, the veteran community's deep desire to help support the Afghan veterans in the U.S. and actions they can take to support their Afghan security force partners. Additionally she will discuss how the veteran and military family communities can become more resilient in this particular moment of time and what can be done to help veterans overcome PTSD and trauma. Lyla has an uplifting perspective when it comes to resiliency and overcoming adversity - she is proof that it is possible.

On this edition of Next Steps Forward, National Basketball Association (NBA) great Ray Scott joins program host Chris Meek. Scott was a six-foot-nine-inch forward and center who played his college basketball at the University of Portland before he was number-four overall pick in the 1961 NBA draft, chosen by the Detroit Pistons. Ray Scott had an 11-year career in the NBA and American Basketball Association with the Pistons, Baltimore Bullets, and Virginia Squires. He went on to become an NBA coach and was the first Black man to be named as the league's Coach of the Year. He's also the author of a riveting book, "The NBA in Black and White: The Memoir of a Trailblazing NBA Player and Coach." With such an amazing career during a momentous time of change in our country's history, Scott will discuss racism in the world of sports and in our country in general while imparting a healthy dose of positivity and applicable advice for both athletes and non-athletes alike.

Ruth Rathblott is a TEDx speaker, Inspirational DEI speaker and an award-winning former CEO committed to creating inclusion for all. Ruth has spent her entire career focused on providing opportunities for those who face obstacles. In this installment of Next Steps Forward, she speaks with Chris Meek about being born with a limb difference and how her experiences have propelled her to speak on issues of inclusion and diversity, the freedom of accepting your differences, and rising above life’s challenges. Ruth will recount her story of hiding her disability and feeling intense angst as a teenager before finally finding acceptance toward her differences and embracing her authenticity as a human being. She will speak to issues of inclusivity surrounding those individuals with disabilities - or more so a lack thereof - as well as diversity within disabilities, which is all too often overlooked. The audience will be engaged, entertained and inspired by Ruth’s advice on how to overcome obstacles in their lives to become more empowered and to achieve their goals despite their differences.

On this week's edition of Next Steps Forward, special guest Heather C. Fischer joins program host Chris Meek to discuss human trafficking, human rights and democracy. Heather became involved in combating human trafficking as a volunteer at a small Connecticut nonprofit. She became the first-ever White House special advisor assigned to combat human trafficking and is now the senior advisor for human rights crimes at Thomson Reuters Special Services. Her experience includes working at the U.S. Department of State focused on civilian security, democracy, human rights and combating human trafficking and as a subject matter expert on human trafficking at the McCain Institute for International Leadership. Throughout the hour, Heather will discuss how she is focused on the crisis in Ukraine in her current role, the role that social media can play in human trafficking, how individuals can protect themselves from becoming trafficked and so much more.

Regular listeners and viewers of Next Steps Forward know that the program is focused on personal empowerment, commitment to our own well-being and the motivation to achieve more than we ever thought possible. This installment's guest, Ayman Mukerji Househam, covers all three of those topics in the course of the show's 52 minutes. Ayman's professional career is the story of a fascinating journey. She went from a successful career on Wall Street to the world of science where, today, she is a clinical social worker, neuroimmunology researcher, Mindfulness practitioner and computer scientist. Ayman is dedicated to reducing and preventing burnout and attrition at hospitals by teaching frontline workers mindfulness through micro-habits, via her offering called Jivika. She is also the author of several book chapters and peer-reviewed papers on neuroimmunology and epigenetics of mindfulness interventions. Throughout the hour she will speak about her journey filled with many outstanding accomplishments, focus on mindfulness and meditation and even lead the audience in a meditation exercise!

Lynda Gratton is one of the foremost global thought-leaders on the future of work and has been named by "Business Thinkers 50" as one of the top fifteen business thinkers. A professor of Management Practice at London Business School and author of Redesigning Work, a book on how to transform your business, Professor Gratton joins program host Chris Meek to draw on her thirty years of research into the technological, demographic, cultural and societal trends to speak to those that are shaping work. Throughout the hour she will focus on redesigning work and how to transform an organization and make hybrid work for everyone. Specifically she will present her four step framework which includes understanding the challenges a business faces, reimagining new approaches, testing these within the organization and creating based on data-led feedback. If you are looking to increase productivity and better your business acumen, this is an hour you will not want to miss!

Dr. Ellen Beckjord, the Vice President of Population Health and Clinical Optimization at UPMC Health Plan and host of the Health Plan's podcast, Good Health, Better World, speaks with Chris Meek about a myriad of issues within the mental health space on this installment of Next Steps Forward. Dr. Beckjord addresses the common notion that mental health issues can be addressed quickly, a belief often promoted by the relative conveniences that many individuals experience in their daily lives. In addition to a strong focus on access to mental health in terms of policy and parity, she will highlight emerging bright spots in mental health treatment, how mental health challenges affect different age groups, the social determinants of healthcare and behavioral science and the often overlooked silver linings from the COVID-19 pandemic. A champion for a culture that recognizes that good mental health is just as important as good physical health, Dr. Beckjord will leave the audience with a renewed vigor to focus on and address our population's overall mental health.