VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Marines assigned to the Naval School of Music Marine Detachment, based at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story (JEBLCFS) got to experience a chaplain-led resiliency and team building exercise from the tops of the trees at the Adventure Park at Virginia Aquarium in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
The park features obstacle courses and climbing challenges set in the trees at varying heights.
Lt. Scott Dean, a chaplain assigned to the Navy Chaplains Religious Enrichment Development Operation (CREDO), said he understands that many of the people he wants to help are not traditionally religious. That’s why he uses the “chapel on the go” concept to share important information in environments that are challenging and fun.
“More and more people are now spiritual but not religious, and we need to meet them where they are,” he said.
Dean and Lt. Cmdr. Michael Monroig, a chaplain assigned to JEBLCFS, invited the Marines to meet at Adventure Park to learn about stress resilience and self-care based on the ARSENAL model developed by a former Army special forces operational psychologist. ARSENAL is an acronym for the program’s seven focus areas: awareness, rest, support, exercise, nutrition, attitude, and learning. The Marines learned about these components and completed a self-assessment to gauge their strengths and weaknesses in these areas.
“It was great to have discussions that provided awareness of core areas in our lives that impact our ability to be resilient,” said Gunnery Sgt. John Geary, one of the Marines participating in the event. “I am not a fan of heights, so the tree climbing experience provided me a challenge that tested my state of mind and allowed me to reflect on my resilience level at that time.”
That’s exactly what combining life skills information with a challenging exercise is meant to do, said Dean. “This is not just theory. It’s about the small changes you can make in your life to improve your resiliency.”
Geary said he appreciated the fact that the lessons learned could be incorporated gradually and easily, rather than requiring dramatic change all at once.
“The importance placed on making small adjustments until a new habit is formed resonated with me and would be accessible to other military members who have busy lives,” he said.
Sgt. Jessica Backes, a former high risk training facilitator who has been at the Marine Detachment less than two months, said she was in her element up in the trees. Her favorite part of the experience was the opportunity to learn life skills while getting to know her co-workers.
“You see a different side of them,” she said. “It was really cool to have those conversations in civvies, outside of work.”
One other thing she noticed was that the Marines weren’t afraid of falling. “They were afraid of falling and not getting back up,” Backes said.
Fortunately, the resiliency skills taught during the chapel on the go event were designed to help get them back on their feet during stressful situations in the trees, and more importantly in life.
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