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One Mind Supporter Profile – Mike & Martha Herb

MIKE and MARTHA HERB

CAPT Mike and RADM Martha Herb, (both U.S. Navy, retired) live in Buckhead, GA just east of Atlanta.

Both Mike and Martha have had distinguished, lasting military careers. It was through the military that they met and through the military that they became brain health supporters and supporters of One Mind.

Mike and Martha met in 1979 while attending the Navy’s School of Diving and Salvage in Washington, DC. Assigned as diving partners, their friendship blossomed and continued after graduation when they were both stationed at the Navy Base San Diego where they served in different Diving and Salvage Commands – Mike on a salvage ship and Martha at a command that provided underwater ship husbandry to the fleet in San Diego. In the summer of 1980 they married.

After serving in Active Duty for 4.5 years, in 1983, Martha transitioned to the Navy Reserves. As a dual military couple, this allowed them to continue their Navy lifestyles as they grew their family. As a Navy Reserve, Martha could be at home with their children while still retaining her involvement with the Navy. When their children were old enough, Martha returned to school, earning a Master’s Degree in Human Resources and Human Development and a Doctor of Education specializing in military counseling. From 1996 to 2010, Martha worked as a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in Maryland where she often counseled returning veterans who preferred to avoid the military’s mental health services. From 2007 to 2010 Martha was intimately involved with the Returning Warrior Program, a Yellow Ribbon program that further advanced her insights to the challenges our warriors faced. In 2010 Martha, was mobilized to Afghanistan and promoted to Rear Admiral. As a “citizen-warrior” in Afghanistan, Martha often provided support to the other service personnel who understood the value of her civilian professional training and skillset. When she returned, Martha was assigned to a variety of leadership roles that supported our sailors and returning warriors that focused on the prevention of military sexual trauma and the prevention of suicide and other destructive behaviors. It was a combination of this role and her prior counseling experiences that heightened Martha’s awareness of the intense impact that brain health has on a person, especially within the military.

Mike’s military career ran parallel to Martha’s. For 29 years, Mike served in a variety of U.S. Navy Diving and Salvage roles. After that, he transitioned to the civil service, where he now serves as the Director of Salvage Operations, providing technical, operational, and emergency support to the Navy, the Department of Defense, and other Federal agencies. Throughout his career, Mike was an active member of the Diving and Salvage community and the larger Explosive Ordnance community. The members of both communities enjoy close friendships and their paths often intertwine. It was the suicide of a fellow community member and a past shipmate of Mike’s that exposed Mike to the severity of brain health challenges and the tragic outcomes that can occur if they are left untreated. Their shipmate and family friend was a U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal officer who also had a distinguished military career. The difference was their friend struggled with post-traumatic stress likely as a result of a brain injury he sustained.

In honor of their friend and in support of the post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury focused research One Mind promotes and supports, in 2014, Mike and Martha made their first donation to our non-profit. To amplify their support, one year later, Mike and Martha set up a reoccurring monthly donation to One Mind that extends the tribute to their friend but also simplifies the logistics of their financial support.

This month (March 2019) marks the 4-year anniversary of when the Herb’s set up their reoccurring donation to One Mind. We are grateful for the continued support they give to our non-profit, the military service they provided and the support they have given to those who have struggled with brain health challenges. The Herbs are by all accounts Brain Health Heroes and we are honored to include them in this One Mind Supporter Profile.

Setting up a reoccurring monthly donation to One Mind is an easy way to maximize your support of the brain health work we do. Not only does it allow you to spread out the funds you donate to more manageable disbursements, but it also frees you from needing to schedule and/or facilitate each individual donation. One Mind appreciates it because the reoccurring donations help provide a consistent flow of financial support throughout each year. Please contact us today to learn more about how you can set up a reoccurring monthly donation.