Josh and K-9 Spike

My name is Joshua Weckman and I am the father of three amazing children with my wife of 20 years. I served in the Minnesota Army National Guard for over 24 years and finally retired in 2024 after multiple deployments and dozens of state active duties. I also have worked in metro hospitals as a supervisor and now manager of security teams for 15 years. I grew up in rural Minnesota in a family of 5, first as dairy farmers and then the average two parents working middle class family. I joined the National Guard after trying college for a year and not liking it, as far back as I could ever remember I wanted to be in the Army so it was not a surprise to anyone when I joined. After basic and AIT I was getting to know my Unit when, while doing an AT in Italy 9/11 happened and like so many others the course of my life was changed.
In the following years I went on deployments to eastern Europe and then to Iraq twice. While in Iraq the first time I was part of convoy security operations from southern Iraq through Baghdad, and up to Balad. These missions exposed us to enemy fire, IEDs, EFPs, and incidents within the cities of extreme violence and atrocity committed against civilians as well as the military. This deployment also got extended at the end making last just under two years between training and time in country.
My second deployment in Iraq came only 16 months later. That time I was part of the Personal Security Detail for the command group of MND south. Even in the short time between my deployments there was a significant decrease in attacks on US forces in Iraq but our COB was routinely exposed to mortar and rocket attacks. Unfortunately this time my unit was not so lucky and we lost multiple young men to indirect fire on base one night. This incident greatly impacted everyone in the unit and on the base as you would expect.
After coming home my wife, who has been through me through all of my deployments strongly encouraged me to start getting help for Mental health. My whole family is very close, including extended family who are almost all still local and include 50+ first cousins. Everyone was very supportive and several of my cousins has also enlisted and deployed through this timeframe so the family is very pro military, but my wife was the driving force and my primary support going through therapy. I have been through multiple programs and therapists over the last 15 years now, some bad, some good, some life changing and I am a huge proponent of Mental health now.
Finally at the end of my career things got tougher for a time. Our unit was called up for civil unrest in the twin cities over a dozen times in 2020 into 2021. It became very hard on me being in my home but in full kit and carrying firearms while going through areas that began to look a lot like Bagdad. Eventually I decided to retire after 24 years of service but I still am connected with many of the soldiers I have served with in that timeframe and I am active in supporting our unit FRG