DENVER - When Benjamin Maestas graduated from East High School in Denver, he made the decision to enlist in the United States Marine Corps. He was highly trained to fight a war and was deployed to Afghanistan.
"I had a strong identity in the Marines as being Sergeant Maestas. I knew my role. I was confident about it," Maestas said.
The challenge came when Maestas returned home and entered civilian life.
"When I was leaving the Marines, I had, I don't want to say an identity crisis, but it definitely called into question who I was and what I wanted to do with my future," Maestas said.
He found the answer to the question in a program called, Veterans to Farmers. Created in 2011 by Buck Adams, a former Marine, the organization gives veterans the chance to learn hands on skills in agriculture.
Maestas has spent months working to design and build an organic hydroponic greenhouse in Denver. The high-tech greenhouse is nearly complete and seeds will be planted in early December. It is hoped that by February the facility will begin producing lettuce that will be sold on-site and to local grocery stores.
"When this facility is fully operational we'll be able to produce 1,700 lettuce units per week," Maestas said.
Veterans to Farmers is just beginning to grow as well. Maestas was the first veteran trained in the program that now is working with a handful of other vets. The challenge they are facing is finding farmers willing to work with and train the vets. They are also hoping to raise enough money to pay the vets a small amount of money during their training.
"We really believe this model can provide long-term careers for veterans, so we want to be able to share it with as many people as possible," Adams said.
The program also provides an environment for returning veterans to decompress from affects of being in combat.
"There's proven facts that working with growing plants inside a greenhouse environment works well with PTSD," Adams said.
"From the military to here there is a big contrast," Maestas said. "Here the environment is a lot more serene."
The program also allows veterans, like Maestas to answer questions about their future.
"So that we can find a role again and find a purpose, find that new identity," Maestas said.
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