Profiles in Havok

Mitchel Coffman is a New York City-based artist. He is the son of a Vietnam-era veteran and is the longtime friends of several special operations folks. His 25 oil-on-canvas portraits of fallen Rangers are featured at the 75th Ranger Regiment Hall of Honor at Hunter Army Airfield and his newest exhibit is an immersive look at the GWOT, titled, "Wish You Were Here." He has painted murals in Marylan...

Dakota Silvey is a New York-based playwright, stage manager, wildland firefighter and U.S. Air Force Veteran. Recorded in-person at the Players in NYC, Dakota spoke about life as both a writer and an active participant in the profession of arms. His play INTERMISSION PLAY placed second in Veterans Repertory Theater's latest 10-minute playwriting competition.

Peter Corbett is a medically retired 20-year veteran of the South Portland, ME police department with an extensive career as a patrol officer, school resource officer and member of the dive unit. Medically retired after struggling with PTS, Peter is a candid, heartfelt and compelling advocate for mental health in the first responder community.

Stephanie Kline is a playwright from Arlington, VA. She is a Marine Corps veteran, former Air Force dependent, and served as an Army civilian and defense contractor.  Her short plays have won multiple competitions and festival selections, including selection to the NYC Players’ Theatre 2021 Short Play Festival with a four-night, off-Broadway run of ‘Torture Chamber.’  Her first full-leng...

Dan Lauria has appeared as a guest star in over seventy television episodic programs and more than twenty Movie Of The Week productions plus a score of motion picture credits.  Dan is a very familiar face to the off-off, and off-Broadway and regional theatre scene having performed, written or directed over 50 professional stage productions.  In 2010/11 Dan was seen on Broadway as the leg...

Kat Furrow is a self-taught artist based in Carlsbad, California. She is a Navy veteran, a full-time student, and an art instructor with over a decade of experience. Drawing inspiration from her love of people and nature, Kat is passionate about her craft, utilizing bold colors and textures. She embraces an "Art Every Day, it’s a Mindset" philosophy, viewing her art as a metaphor for living life w...

Tamim Fares is a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan. After struggling with chemical dependencies, he turned to writing. His work, featured in Lethal Minds Journal and the Savage Wonder literary blog, often delves into themes of struggle, recovery, and hope, reflecting his personal experiences. For a deeper dive into his life and work, follow Tamim Fares on Instagram at Blackfoot Chronicles and...

Episode 123 is our annual year-end episode featuring the entire core Havok Journal team. We talk about our favorite HJ writers, articles and themes from 2023 and look ahead to another year of exponential growth in 2024.

Mikael Cook is a former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant and veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He holds a master’s degree in business administration, residing and working in Southeast Michigan. During the August 2021 evacuation of Afghanistan, Mikael was a part of the #DigitalDunkirk team that saved thousands of our Afghan allies that had been left for dead. He was personally responsible for the evacuati...

I sit down with Havok Journal owner Charlie Faint to discuss the Israel/Palestine issues and get some recent historical perspective.

Michael D. Fay is a former USMC Combat Artist with multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mike enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1975 and was discharged in 1978 as an 81 mm mortarman (MOS 0341). In 1978, he returned to Penn State Univeristy and graduated in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science in Art Education. In 1983, re-enlisted into the Marines and served as an avionics...

The child of a Ukrainian POW and US Air Force veteran, Michael Bard is an active musician, composer and teacher who resides near Washington, D.C. He has performed as a soloist and with various musical ensembles throughout the United States, Europe, Japan, North Africa, South America, Central America and the Middle East. He has also been featured on various radio and television programs around...

Arriving in the US as a refugee, Ayman Kafel escaped civil wars in both Lebanon and Liberia. Following 9/11, Ayman enlisted in the US Army where he saw combat in Iraq before being forced to medically retire due to service-connected injuries. He continues to serve as a law enforcement officer. A regular contributor to Havok Journal, he is also the host of Project Sapient, a podcast dedicated to law...

Episode 117 with former Army combat veteran Dave Campisano, founder of 22 Mohawks . Dave joined the Army in 2001 and served in various light infantry units until his separation in 2016. In 2009, he passed Ranger School and was deployed with the Golden Dragons 2/14In, 10th Mountain Division to Iraq. After his honorable discharge in 2016, he attended Suffolk University in Boston where he majored in...

Episode 116 with former NYPD detective and actor/singer Michael Devine . Mike, a native New Yorker, is an intrepid character actor recognized for his roles as Detective Paul O'Rourke on the Emmy-nominated "The Undoing" (HBO) and James Tech on "Limitless" (CBS). With various guest star appearances on network, streaming and pay cable television, he is no stranger to the camera. His work can also bee...

Episode 115 with former NYPD detective and actor/singer Michael Devine . Mike, a native New Yorker, is an intrepid character actor recognized for his roles as Detective Paul O'Rourke on the Emmy-nominated "The Undoing" (HBO) and James Tech on "Limitless" (CBS). With various guest star appearances on network, streaming and pay cable television, he is no stranger to the camera. His work can also bee...

Charles Faint currently serves as the Chair for the Study of Special Operations and an assistant professor in the Defense and Strategic Studies program for the Modern War Institute at West Point. A retired military intelligence officer, he commissioned into the military intelligence branch of the US Army through the ROTC program at Mercer University and claims Alabama as his home state. After...

Ivan F. Ingraham is a writer, speaker, and storyteller. He served 24-years in the United States Marine Corps, mostly in Special Operations. Ivan is the CEO of Golden Compass, LLC , a leadership consulting company. Read Ivan's work at  The War Horse ,  Task & Purpose , and Havok Journal . Ivan's Amazon author page Follow Ivan here

This week, due to our August scheduling mishaps and my innate curiosity, I sat down with myself for a little editorial speculation about the war in Ukraine and the way we in the military/veteran community think about it. Why do so many otherwise knowledgeable folks give Russia any benefit of doubt? Why are we so confused as to why it's worth supporting Ukraine? Why do so many people who never care...

Episode 111 with Scott Chapman . Scott served in 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment from 2001-2005. He deployed to Iraq during the 2003 invasion and then to the Afghan theatre 4 times. After the military, Scott worked in the executive protection space and then as an OGA security contractor. Providing security support to the Intelligence community where he deployed 17 times; mostly to the Forward O...

Poet, musician and former USMC combat veteran Benjamin Fortier has finally published his latest book PHANTOMS , covering his deployment to Iraq in '06-'07. About the book, Sebastian Junger said, "Fortier’s poetry – can I even call it that? - seems to do the impossible: transfer the experience of combat directly into our psyches. PHANTOMS is stunning. If you have never been in combat, you will unde...

This week, due to several last-minute guest cancellations, sees me talk with myself about the newly released CDC numbers regarding suicide in 2022 and the way they intersect with the veteran population. While rejecting monocausal explanations, I do speculate and pontificate about some lesser-covered root causes ranging from foreign influence and self-loathing in the veteran community.

Mike Schropp is a visual artist, specializing in abstract painting and sculpture. Mike is a combat veteran, having deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with the US Army. Our wide-ranging conversation touches on his artistic process, the unique circumstances of his marriage, his most eventful day in Afghanistan, his adjustment to civilian life, and the rugged independence he has claimed on his artistic...

Scott Cottrell is a retired US Army Colonel. His debut novel, When Chaos Reigns , is available now on pre-order and will be released on Kindle on August 8, 2023 . China, Russia, a powerful drug cartel, and a radical Islamic terrorist group form a secret cabal bent on shocking America and her global influence to its core while taking what they want across the globe. With the U.S. President facing i...

Gina Herrera is a mixed-media artist residing in California. A 25-year veteran of the Navy, Army and Air Force, she received her BFA in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. During her studies, she was deployed overseas in support of several war contingencies with the Armed Forces. Once her final tour was complete, she obtained her MFA in Studio Arts from the Universi...