These people may be soldiers, intelligence professionals, law enforcement officers, or first responders (Fire/EMS). We at the Sanctuary refer to these brave souls as the “Guardians of Our Way of Life”. Many of these “Guardians” are also deployed to free others from tyranny, disaster, and oppression so that they, the liberated, can experience a better way of life.

Many of these “Guardians” experience prolonged time periods of stressful situations and at times encounter tragedy resulting in deeply held grief and trauma. Oftentimes, a fear of reprisal and false concept of stalwart strength keeps these “Guardians” from speaking of the tragedies. The families they return to are usually not educated as to how to assist their loved ones returning from harms way. These traumatized “Guardians” if they turn to anyone at all, usually turn only to their fellow traumatized “Guardians” isolating the families who love them from intimacy and keeping both of the “Guardians” from meaningful dialogue with those who have meaningful insight into their experiences and the healing process.

These Guardians of Our Way of Life have been our strength, and yet they in many ways are without refuge themselves. The unresolved tragedies within may not only affect themselves and their families, but perhaps even the childrens' children as well. There are hundreds of stories of estranged adult children hearing of their parents heroic deeds and encounters with trauma for the first time at their parent's funeral.

One man in his fifties told the founder that he did not know his father was a POW until a few years earlier over his father's casket when a fellow POW spoke of his father's valor and suffering on other's behalf. Just knowing that information would have changed the dynamics with his own father, his own processing of anger and resolution, and the way he in turn raised the deceased's grandchildren.

Our Guardians will no longer be without Refuge. The Sanctuary will be erected, eventually in multiple locations, for our Guardians to have Refuge, a Sacred Trust, and find Redemption as they learn to take their own tragedies and turn them into triumph for many others.