One day I was fishing for work. I came across this social media influencer and he was holding a contest.  He was looking for a very specific style of art, and one which I seemed to fit the bill.  So I through my ring into the hat and made my intentions known that I would like to be considered.  It was a few days later that I received a notification that I had been selected to attend this private group.  I created a graphic for this obscure person that already at that point had a couple hundred thousand followers, and he loved it!  And I got a message from him saying that I would be his designer from that point on!  I was truly ecstatic! I really did not know what to expect or what would follow, but I can tell you that I worked my butt off.  I wanted to make sure that this person was getting the designs that he needed and at the right time.  I stuck my nose to the grindstone and pounded out images for him.  Some nights working well into the wee hours of the morning.  We created about fifty designs in a little less than four months, and they were successful designs.

John Burk had pulled me out of obscurity and into a new realm of life that made me a more productive individual.  John is a very successful social media influencer.  More than that though he is an amazing person with a very kind heart.  And if you watched “American Grit: Season 2,” on Fox, you could see that first hand. John was not just playing a character.  He was being who he is.  With popularity comes this awkward backlash of people that are going to hate you, or think that you are not being genuine; which also comes people trying to use your recognition for their personal gain.  I have seen John go through that with several times with several different people, and I can tell you that there is a real reason for John to have trust issues with people that say they are going to help him.  John, I am sure at the heart is a very trusting person.  He wants to believe in people, but people are scum and they try to get things out of John that he would be willing to give, if it wasn’t his livelihood that people want from him.

John has a very soft spot for Veterans.  Obviously, he is one, but more than that he has done some great work bringing attention to the people that need help, and trying to get the VA to reform.  The videos that he has made to try to bring about change to the VA have all gone viral, and for good reason.  The people of the world, even if they do not like violence, understand the need for care for our Veterans.  And most people understand that Veterans a lot of times get the shaft when it comes to getting decent healthcare.  Something promised to us Veterans.  Obviously John has tried to help these Veterans with his influence as much as he can.  He has raised money for different organizations, and he has been instrumental in making much needed changes to Veterans Affairs.  But.  The stories keep coming in.

John likes to play video games. And two of these games, probably doesn’t come to a shock to anyone: Player Unknown: Battlegrounds and World of Warcraft.  His teammates and him all started talking about creating a nonprofit that would bring Veterans together.  John contacted me about creating a logo. John and I were just finishing wrapping up the ITA Gear brand and this new idea came out to create a Veteran’s group that would bring Veterans together through gaming.  And it was really coming together.

I had experience with building a nonprofit offered my 501(C)(3) to help get the group off of the ground.  I discussed with John the ways that I went about it, and the next thing I know we are actually creating a group to help Veterans in a way that many people chastised us for.  At the same time the World Health Organization said that being a gamer and playing video games is a mental health disorder.  Completely ignoring the fact that the disease is not the gamer nor the games, but the addiction that can come from it.  The mission from the start was different: “Bringing Veterans together through the means of games.”  Being able to reach out and talk to someone at any point or time in the world because we are all across the world, different time zones makes it so that we are all able to be part of a Veteran that needs help – if they are willing to reach out to a fellow Veteran for said help.

Hence; Alpha Nerds Guild is formed!  Our group is not only for Veterans, but for law enforcement officers, first responders, and others that need peer support.  We will be offering Vets/LEOS/First Responders gaming consoles to stay connected with other Veterans through gaming.  The caveat to that is we will supply the console, they will have to supply the connection to the internet and other networks.