Operation Resiliency

Written By: Luke Osteen | Issue: 2021/04 – April

Davis Picklesiemer

A project to help veterans and emergency responders cope with the stresses of their lives through compassionate peer care has expanded its mission to reach those in need on the Plateau.

Davis Picklesimer, a member of Highlands Fire & Rescue and Western NC Peer Support; and his brother-in-law, Justin Kingsland, a British Army Special Forces veteran and the owner/operator of Highland Excursions, combined their skills and their understanding of the needs of those who routinely operate in high-stress, life-or-death situations, and created Warrior Survivor School in 2013.

“First-responders and veterans share many of the same mental stressors from what they have to deal with, and potentially bring those challenges home with them or even surface in retirement,” says Picklesimer. “We teach positive techniques to help them identify and manage those stresses, and also how to help others who are going through the same things.” 

The arrival of Covid-19 in Highlands and Cashiers brought many of those same anxieties and stressors to the civilians here who are trying to navigate this dangerous time. 

“So many of us are facing isolation from our neighbors and loved ones, the disruption of our daily routines, hypersensitivity, and the steady fear of contracting Covid is with everyone on a daily basis – it can show up with increased anxiety, panic attacks over empty shelves in the grocery store, even the anger over politics that we’re seeing,” says Picklesimer.

Collaborating with local Counselors, Tracy Franklin shared, “People don’t always need trained counselors 24/7. Sometimes, people just need a friend to speak with that understands their plight and can relate.”

The realization that their neighbors are facing the same levels of ongoing stresses that they’d been training veterans to deal with galvanized Picklesimer and Kingsland and prompted them to seek funding from the Highlands-Cashiers Health Foundation, The Wade Hampton Donor Fund, and the Western North Carolina Bridge Foundation to offer their unique educational resources to the general public.

“We want to make sure that this knowledge and these skills are available to anyone who’d like to embrace these coping techniques for themselves and for the benefit of others in their community,” Picklesimer says.

Operation Resiliency is being offered through Zoom Sessions to begin with and a trio of options for the public. 

First, General Awareness will offer one day of training to help participants identify the psychological challenges presented by life or in 2021 and ways to cope with them.

This introductory course will be followed by Peer Support, two days of training which will dive deeper into coping strategies, with lessons on how to help those in danger of being overwhelmed by their circumstances.

“It’s a matter of recognizing the needs of friends, family or co-workers and knowing how to offer practical help,” says Picklesimer.

The third phase is Invitation, with our community offering its support for individuals and groups with special needs through recovery retreats.

“When you look at our history, Highlands has always offered physical and mental health care to people from across America – we’d like to organize and promote that tradition,” Picklesimer says.    

If you’d like to learn more about Operation Resiliency and how you can play a part, contact Picklesimer at [email protected].