Shawn Dunham

Vincent Adams

Shawn Dunham, Sergeant (E-5), is a 40-year-old active duty soldier stationed at Fort Hood, Texas and regular participant
at the SP SSV workshop. His primary Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is 74D-Chemical, Biological, Radiological
and Nuclear Specialist (NBC). He served for a short time in
the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was medically discharged for sustaining a serious knee injury. Sergeant Dunham served in the USMC from March 1993 to July 1994. He has been in the Army since January 2007 and expects to end his time in service (ETS) at Fort Hood in August of 2013. He was born in Agua Dulce, Texas and currently resides in Copperas Cove, Texas. An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) injured Shawn on three separate occasions while serving overseas. His injuries include a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) for which he suffers from PTSD. He has received Anger Management and Stress Management therapy at the TBI Clinic, Darnall Army Hospital, and the Behavioral Health Clinic at Ft. Hood, for these conditions. He believes that the SSV program has helped him better cope with the PTSD. Regarding the treatment he received through the military, Shawn found it to be “Very impersonal as

if they have heard all the stories before, very negative”. Shawn has been attending SSV at the SP since March of 2012. He found out about the program through his friends. He has become the “poster child” for this group, and also engages in fundraisers
for the program. “The workshops and instructors are a God
send – learning to play and write, and put it all together and to hear the thoughts in my head, come to life in a song.” Shawn believes the workshops have allowed him to open up and share his experiences with others better. “Watching my wife, mother, and mother-in-law cry after I sang my songs in Luckenbach, it was so touching to see the looks on everyone’s faces. It showed that my feelings were coming out and everyone was feeling what I was...My family and friends have seen a huge difference in me. I have made new friends that have become family and brothers. I owe the program my life and it lets the public hear our stories in a different way”.

Sergeant Dunham holds the M-40 A1 gas mask, one of various gas masks used by the military of the United States.