Connect Five Veterans Foundation

08/28/2026

For many Veterans, leaving military service is the beginning of an entirely new transition, and research shows it can be a dangerous one.

A study of nearly 1.9 million U.S. service members found that su***de risk was highest during the first year after leaving the military, particularly between 6 and 12 months after separation.

That matters. Because behind every Veteran struggling after service is often a family watching, worrying, trying to help, and hoping the person they love will be okay.

At Green Star Families of America, we believe we have to talk about what can happen after the uniform comes off, not only after a family experiences a devastating loss.

Awareness matters. Prevention matters, and the families walking beside our Veterans matter.

*Source: JAMA Network Open (2020), study of nearly 1.9 million U.S. service members following military separation.

08/26/2026

08/23/2026

Some words make people uncomfortable. Su***de is one of them.

People change the subject. People look away. People whisper.

But families don't get that choice. They live with the loss and they carry the questions. They carry the birthdays, anniversaries, and empty chairs.

For families impacted by veteran su***de, the conversation doesn't end when everyone else moves on.

That's why we will keep talking about veteran su***de. Because silence doesn't make it disappear.

***deAwareness

08/21/2026

HONORING A VETERAN WHO DIED BY SU***DE IS NOT “CHAMPIONING” SU***DE.

When we honor a Veteran who died by su***de, we are not honoring su***de.

We are honoring a life of service and more importantly recognizing the family left behind.

A Veteran’s entire life does not become their final moment. Their oath mattered. Their service mattered. Their sacrifice mattered. And the invisible wounds they may have carried home did not suddenly disappear when the uniform came off.

Neither did their family’s connection to that service. That is an important part of why the Green Star Service Banner matters. The banner is for the family.

It gives recognition to families whose Veteran died by su***de and who have too often found themselves outside the traditional Service Banner recognition after their loved one’s military service ended.

And supporting those families does not compete with su***de prevention.

We should be doing everything we can to prevent Veteran su***de. We should be fighting for the Veterans who are here, making resources available, having difficult conversations, and helping people get through the moments when staying feels impossible.

But prevention and recognition are not either/or. When prevention fails, the family still matters.

Recognizing that family does not glorify su***de. It does not suggest that su***de was honorable or inevitable. And it certainly does not take anything away from the work of keeping Veterans alive.

It simply refuses to allow the manner of a Veteran’s death to erase a lifetime of service, or to leave their family without recognition because the wounds that followed them home were invisible.

We can fight for those who are still here. And we can stand with the families of those we have already lost.

We should be doing both.
No family should feel invisible.

08/19/2026

Here is an opportunity for a veteran in need of a vehicle. See John or Jake at Conely Automotive (Brighton)

08/17/2026

For more than a century, a star has told the story of a military family.
During World War I, families began hanging Service Banners in the windows of their homes.

A Blue Star told the community: Someone from this family is serving.

When that service member died, a Gold Star could be placed over the blue:
This family has experienced a military loss.

Those stars became more than pieces of fabric. They became a way for a nation to recognize the families standing behind those who served.

More than 100 years later, we saw a family that was still missing from that tradition.
The family of a Veteran who came home. The family who watched that Veteran continue carrying wounds that weren't always visible.

And the family left behind when that Veteran died by su***de.
Five years ago, Green Star Families of America began with a simple question:
Where is their star?

- Where is the symbol that tells a mother her son's service still matters?
- Where is the recognition for the spouse who lost the person who came home from war, but never truly escaped it?
- Where is the acknowledgment for the children, siblings and families whose Veteran survived military service, only to lose a battle years later?

That question became the Green Star. Not to replace the Blue Star. Not to redefine the Gold Star. But to continue an American military tradition of recognizing service, sacrifice and the families who carry both.

The Green Star says:
Your Veteran served.
Their life mattered.
Their loss matters.
And your family will not be invisible.

Five years ago, this was an idea. Today, families across this country are telling their stories. States are taking action. Federal legislation is progressing as H.R. 6022. And a national movement is growing.

But the reason we started hasn't changed. No family should feel invisible.

***deAwareness

08/15/2026

The Detroit Free Press reports that Mackinaw City's Lakeview Cemetery no longer has an unknown soldier. The soldier apparently died at the train ferry dock during a blizzard in 1918 and was found in the Spring. The grave was not marked until a fund raising in 1970 to place a stone on the grave and local knowledge of his identity had been lost.

Researchers with the Straits Chapter of the Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution recently tracked down newspaper articles from 1918 and the grave is now known to be that of Joseph Weber (or Webber, depending on the newspaper) an immigrant from Alsace-Lorraine who was in the Ohio National Guard.

A ceremony to recognize him, tell what is known of his story, and unveil a new headstone, will be held tomorrow, August 16, at 2 PM.

08/15/2026

08/15/2026

What a day for a great cause! 🏁🏆

We had an awesome time celebrating some incredible vehicles, craftsmanship, and automotive passion at Serra Mazda Brighton!

A huge congratulations to all of our winners, and thank you to everyone who brought out their ride and helped make the event such a great time.

Nothing beats getting the community together over a shared love of cars. 🚗💨

Check out some of our winners from the show! 👀🏆

08/11/2026

📣Thank you Serra Mazda Brighton for their continued support of The Connect Five Veterans Foundation. The car show and fundraiser this past weekend was truely humbling and very much appreciated. It continues to show when a community comes together great things can happen. We had the opportunity to meet so many new friends and share with them the mission of C5. Looking forward to continuing our friendship and partnership.

All the best

Connect Five Veterans Foundation, board of Directors