Meet Wayne, Team Nokomis Mission Resident Member
In honor of Veteran’s Day we’re highlighting some of the Members of Team Nokomis. Team Nokomis began in 2023 through a partnership with Every Third Saturday, a local organization that exists to assist veterans in finding new purpose after military service. This season we’ve been honored to welcome 27 veterans onto Team Nokomis. Wayne is one of those Members:
“I was attending college at the U of M on September 11, 2001 when the first plane hit. I remember walking into Northrop Auditorium, watching the first building collapse, and thinking it was fake. But once I realized it was not, I made up my mind to finish that year of school, and then join the Marines in the fall.”
When I joined the Marines, my experience was one of instant camaraderie amongst the enlisted. It was patriotism - we were going to fight for our country! I got a lot of support from the community , and my family was especially proud of me. I’m Native American, an Oglala Lakota Sioux, and in my culture when you do something honorable for the people you are given a name. My grandmother, a medicine woman, gave me the name ‘Ehake Iyanka’ - a name that means ‘last one running’. That name was handed down from my grandfather. During the 1890s in the Wounded Knee massacre, he was a child, running from the massacre and came upon a neighboring band of Sioux - that was the name they gave him.
I served in the US Marine Corps for twelve years, active duty for four years from 2002 to 2006, stationed in Hawaii and Japan. I served the rest in the Select Marine Corps Reserve as a Military policeman until 2014. Deployed twice, first to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, and second to Kabul, Afghanistan where I trained the Afghan National Police.
When I joined the military, there was a policy called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, but while I was serving it was lifted. Because of that, I lived two different lives. It was very challenging.
During my active duty in the military I was sexually assaulted multiple times. I loved serving my country and being a US Marine meant so much to me. The choice to stay and continue to serve despite what I went through is something that I have to live with for the rest of my life. I struggle to this day because of the abuse I experienced. I grapple with the fact that I still cherish my military service, but it was because of the trauma I experienced during it that I ultimately left in 2014.
My transition to civilian life has been difficult. It was unexpected. I feel like I am never really going to be a civilian again. When I left the military, I got a lot of support from the VA but I struggled with cycles of substance abuse and I ended up homeless for three years. A group of us Veterans who were on the street used to go to the Downtown (Mpls) Central Library. We would hang out there from open to close because it was the only thing we could do. It was kind of like a little community up there. One of the librarians told me about classes they were offering on basic computer skills and after three sessions, they would give you a laptop. Once I got the laptop, I didn’t have to worry about the computer time limits. I was able to do my own research about organizations helping Veterans and talk to friends through social media.
I also kept up with the VA and when a room opened at House of Charity (transitional housing), I had somewhere to stay. The VA paid for a six month stay there. During that time, Every Third Saturday (ETS) was there to help me in many ways. In the spring of 2022, I began a recovery program at ETS called Warriors Path. I was committed, and thought, ‘I can do this!’ I went through the six weeks and finished it without even using. I showed up every day.
After I completed Warrior’s Path, I applied for a Veteran Readiness benefit that allowed me to enroll in Minneapolis Community and Technical College to pursue a Cyber Security and Defense Degree. I also was able to secure an emergency housing voucher. It was exciting - everything was moving fast. I moved into my apartment in August 2022 just in time for classes to start.
When I was homeless, I had so many resources because I am a veteran. Others were not offered the same services. I want to build something like a website that allows Veterans to access resources easily. Many Veterans have to hope that they say the right thing to the right person at the right time. Instead of having to dig through websites, searching for resources, I want to get it right to their fingertips. My goal is to use the support and connections I’ve made accessible to everyone. I feel hopeful.
I also want to start learning more about my Native American heritage and get more involved in the Sioux Lakota community. This year, I’d really like to participate in a vision quest and Sun Dance ritual. The vision quest is physically challenging and both rituals require a clear focus so I am even more determined to maintain sobriety to be able to do that.
As for running, I want to keep moving and build endurance. I was so grateful when Mile in My Shoes came along. I like running by myself because I can really push myself physically, but I also enjoy running with a group because of the camaraderie. Running with MiMS is fun! It’s great to have people that you know are there, showing up for each other consistently and it holds me accountable for getting back into running. I am just really grateful that Mike J gave me that pair of shoes. Those shoes and being a part of this group is a gift. I know I would not be out here running without MiMS.
I want to stay as involved with MiMS as possible in the off-season and come back next season. I want to come back to this group because of the community. And I want to earn that alumni shirt!”
We greatly appreciate Wayne for sharing his story with Mile in My Shoes. If you’d like to show him a bit of gratitude and support his future goals, feel free to contribute to those by sending a few dollars to his cashapp linked here ($Dwaynzie).
