Podcast

Veteran Peer Support
with Anthony Swann

Summary

Drawing on their lived experience as Veterans, peer support specialists with a history of military service provide peer support to veterans and service members, sharing wellness resources and services to assist them in their recovery from stress-related injuries and behavioral health concerns. 

The Virginia Veteran & Family Support Program (VVFS) is operated statewide by the Virginia Department of Veterans Services and provides outreach, connection, and support to veterans and their families as they address the challenges of military service, transition, deployments, post-traumatic stress, or other behavioral health concerns as well as traumatic brain injuries and physical injuries.  VVFS proudly serves veterans of any service era who are Virginia residents; members of the Virginia National Guard and Armed Forces Reserves not in active federal service; and family members of those veterans and service members. Core services include peer and family support, care coordination, couples workshops, and family retreats.

A native of North Carolina, Anthony Swann enlisted in the Marine Corps Infantry in 1983 and has served with four separate infantry battalions, taught at the School of Infantry, served as a Senior Drill Instructor, and as an Assistant Marine Officer Instructor at the University of Wisconsin. He has also served as Command and base Sergeant Major for a Combat Logistics Regiment in Okinawa, Japan, and lastly as the Director of the Staff Noncommissioned Officer’s Academy in Quantico, Virginia. During his tenure in the Marine Corps, Swann served two tours in Iraq with an infantry battalion, during which he was injured and received the Purple Heart.

Upon retirement after 27 years of active duty service, Swann continued to serve the military as a Recovery Care Coordinator for the Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment, providing resources and services to wounded, ill, and injured Marines. In this capacity, he also served as the Recovery Care Coordinator Site Lead, providing direction and resources to coordinators in Texas, Minnesota, Florida, and Virginia, and has also held the billet of Acting Deputy Program Manager for the Recovery Care program and oversaw 42 Recovery Care Coordinators across the United States.

Upon joining Virginia Veteran and Family Support, Swann served as the Recovery Coordinator for Region 1 until his reassignment as the Senior Veteran Peer Specialist for VVFS. A resident of Fredericksburg, Virginia, Swann is currently the Peer Services Director for the Virginia Veteran and Family Support Program.

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