Shootout For Soldiers Ft. Adrln Inventory Control Manager, Mike Gnoffo
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Our Inventory Control Manager here at Adrenaline, Mike Gnoffo, took the time to put some thoughts together about the Shootout for Soldiers and our newly formed relationship. Take a read below:
Lacrosse and military service have been tied together so much in my life that in a way, connecting Adrenaline and Shootout for Soldiers felt like a homecoming. In the beginning, I hadn’t given serious consideration to joining the service until I heard Coach Richie Meade (then with the Naval Academy) give an impassioned speech at a Top Gun camp one summer in high school. I had watched the towers fall in my sophomore math class, and hearing how the sport was given deeper meaning by his player’s national service set me on the path to fight. By the time I was old enough to join, Lacrosse had helped me develop the physical strength, team leadership experience, personal responsibility, and intense competitiveness that drove me to the Marine Corps. Since then, I’ve had the privilege to go to beautiful and dangerous places all over the world with men I consider family. A combat deployment, particularly one spent on remote bases or outside the wire, is a transcendent experience. You spend months relying on the men to your left and right, and stake your reputation on how well you can be relied upon in return. You establish a comfort level with risk and violence, and accept whatever level of each is required to perform your role on the team. Replicating the gravity and value that fill every moment on deployment is nearly impossible at home, and without a reliable team to fall back on, a lot of guys who’ve crossed over to that side seem to have a hard time crossing back. I was fortunate to have Lacrosse come back into my life not long after my last deployment when I was hired on at Adrenaline. The culture here is tied inexorably to lacrosse, and my return to the sport meant playing, coaching, and essentially living and breathing team mentality. While the stakes are different (and certainly less risky), Lacrosse has been a key element in my easy transition back to civilian life. When I found out about Shootout for Soldiers and played in the inaugural California event, connecting this program and Adrenaline made perfect sense. This team has been a new home for me as I move on from military service, and I’m very excited to use our work and apparel to support Shootout for Soldiers.
The co-branded hats we did for our new friends at Shootout For Soldiers. You can learn more AND buy these new lids on their site at:
http://shootoutforsoldiers.com/product/sfs-x-adrln-snapback/
http://shootoutforsoldiers.com/product/sfs-x-adrln-snapback-shield/