It started with a simple conversation in my partner’s backyard in Northglenn, watching her chickens contentedly scratching and pecking. I was wrestling with a challenge many disabled veterans face - how to get into farming without overextending myself physically. "Chickens basically raise themselves," she said, tossing another handful of kitchen scraps their way. Then she caught herself: "Well, once they're adults anyway. The chicks are a whole other story - constant attention, precise temperature control, it's like having feathered babies!"

When I was assigned to the battalion arms room, I was a Specialist with a different kind of military experience - strategic PSYOPS, where we focused on designing hearts and minds campaigns and nation-building exercises. It was the Clinton years, and my work was all about understanding how to connect systems and people in positive ways. So when the battalion was facing a crisis with their arms room - failing inspections, non-functional equipment, and risking losing access to needed weaponry entirely - someone figured my background in understanding how systems and people interact might bring a fresh approach.

In 1992, during the LA riots, I witnessed something that would fundamentally shape my understanding of community resilience. The 32nd Street Market, a mom-and-pop store that had served the South-Central LA and adjacent University of Southern California (USC) communities since the 1960s, stood as the last remaining grocery store in the neighborhood.