You get the impression Kevin Laliberte really values trust. Trust in the process, trust in systems, and trust in people. After all, trust is how he met his wife.

Kevin, originally from New Jersey, was stationed at Hurlburt Field in Northwest Florida, home to Air Force Special Operations Command and the USAF Special Tactics Training Squadron. He was instructing tactical parachuting; she was a newly qualified rigger. His was the first parachute she ever packed.

That’s trust for you.

Now, after 23 years of service, Kevin is on civvy street.

“The only thing I know is how to transition from military life to the mainstream,” he joked.

But he’s bringing a unique set of skills with him, ones that continue to evolve as he steps into civilian life.

In his final years of service, Kevin served as a senior enlisted leader in the U.S. Air Force and Space Force. His role was to ensure units were ready to deploy.

“I spent most of my time helping people organize their lives,” Kevin said. “If someone had a reason they couldn’t deploy, it was my job to solve it.”

That could mean family problems, financial stress, mental health challenges, sobriety struggles, medical issues, or legal and spiritual obstacles.

“I got really good at helping people understand their problems,” he said. “Too often, they confuse their symptoms, or a solution they’ve already come up with, for the actual problem.”

People have long placed their trust in Kevin to help them work through challenges.

“I learned to quickly identify whether what people told me was really the root cause of their situation or not,” he explained. “I’d invite guys into my office—with this giant whiteboard—and we’d map it all out. ‘How did you get here? Then what happened? And what led to that?’ Once we laid it out, we could step back and see the real cause.”

Within the military, Kevin noted, there are systems and organizations you can trust and call on for help.

“There’s an entire base full of agencies. There was always a solution; you just needed to know where to find it,” he said.

Since retiring, Kevin has continued to find ways to offer that same kind of support.

“I’m a relatively talkative guy, I’m approachable, and with my military experience, a lot of veterans feel comfortable opening up to me. They place their trust in me,” Kevin said.

Over time, he began to notice a troubling pattern.

“A lot of military guys keep the ‘cap on’ during their careers. They don’t want to talk about certain things. They worry it might affect their promotions, their standing with peers, their retirement.”

That silence builds pressure.

“And then, one day, they retire… and the cap just blows off, and 20-plus years of problems start pouring out.”

Kevin was going through his own transition at the time.

“I’d listen to a lot of them. I would go home scratching my head, hearing the same conversation over and over,” he said.

That was the catalyst for Surf Brigade.

“The first time I did anything that would eventually become Surf Brigade,” Kevin said, “was with a group of veterans I’d been talking to individually—some I’d served with, others had been introduced to me.”

He invited them to meet him on Grayton Beach at sunset.

“I said, ‘Trust me. Just show up.’”

Kevin brought along surfboards and firewood.

“I told them, ‘Everyone’s getting in the water. I don’t care if you surf or not—we’re going to do something fun together and have some conversations.’”

He planned to ease them in and then start a discussion.

“My intention was to stand in front of them and say, ‘We all have the same problems, and we should talk to each other.’ But it didn’t take that long.”

By the time Kevin got out of the water, someone had already started the fire, and the veterans were talking, organically and openly.

“I just sat back and listened,” he said.

After that first session, several of the attendees reached out to Kevin and said, “I need to do that again.”

For the next year, Kevin hosted these gatherings quarterly. Word spread. Soon, 150 veterans and their families were showing up.

He had to secure permits, hire bonfire companies, arrange catering, and bring in surf instructors. It was exciting.

But the veterans’ feedback began to change.

“They told me they couldn’t wait three months for the next event, and there were too many people showing up. It was hard to have meaningful conversations with that many around.”

Kevin listened. He noticed that most veterans were struggling with the same three post-military challenges: purpose, narrative, and community.

He stopped the large events and incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit—Surf Brigade Foundation—publishing an evidence-based curriculum and developing a structured protocol for surf therapy.

Why surfing?

Kevin cited the mental and physical benefits, but more importantly, surfing gives people a reason to stay in the water long enough for healing to begin.

“Healing begins in the saltwater—with shared stories, shared struggle, and the space to let go,” he said.

It also takes courage to open up about decades of personal pain, and surfing, he explained, builds the trust needed to do that.

“Part of the reason people build such meaningful relationships in the military is because of the shared hardships,” Kevin said. “It’s amazing. Sometimes the worse it sucks, the better friends you become.”

Surfing offers plenty of hardship—wipeouts, crashing waves, humbling fails in front of friends. And that’s part of why it works.

Now fully incorporated with a board of directors, Surf Brigade runs two five-week courses each year—one in the spring and one in the fall. Each cohort includes ten veterans who commit to meeting every Saturday morning on the beach, and every Wednesday night over Zoom with a professional counselor.

The program follows a structured curriculum designed to help veterans transition forward.

“Our counselors help veterans identify their individual purpose, write a new narrative beyond the military, and discover the communities they want to be part of,” Kevin said. “They also help them figure out how they’re willing to contribute to those communities.”

By the end of each course, the impact is clear.

Ten veterans leave knowing one another, sharing a common bond, and walking away with renewed purpose.

Kevin hopes to expand the program—to run sessions more frequently and offer support to others navigating life transitions.

Living along Florida’s Emerald Coast, Kevin noted that six major military bases sit within a 60-mile radius. The broader Northwest Florida region is home to approximately 150,000 veterans and 50,000 active-duty service members.

“I’ve been contacted about running sessions for cancer survivors and for people who have recently lost a spouse or partner,” he said. “We would love to help more people.”

To keep the courses free for veterans, Kevin began fundraising. It was a new challenge—but one filled with opportunity.

“We have partners now who have put their trust in us,” Kevin said.

One U.S.-based surf equipment manufacturer stepped up by donating surfboards. That same company now sells boards across the country, with a portion of profits going to Surf Brigade.

“Our veteran cohorts told us they wanted shirts and hats to show their support and pride in the program,” Kevin added. “So, we partnered with the largest veteran-owned apparel company in the country and started selling them through our website.”

The model is simple.

“We fund the foundation’s work by selling shirts and surf gear.”

His ultimate goal?

“My goal is to run a surf therapy session every month. I want to keep veterans plugged in and continuing to grow,” Kevin said.

“Right now, we don’t have the capacity to do that. But if we can reach our sales goals, we can make it happen.”

People have already stepped forward—offering time, professional services, legal guidance, accounting help, and counseling support. Still, the cost of running surf therapy programs remains significant, and demand continues to grow.

“I trust the work we’re doing and the journey we’re on,” Kevin said. “But most importantly, our veterans trust us to help them navigate life’s waves with renewed resilience and strength.”

Want to support surf therapy for veterans? Learn more and get involved at surfbrigade.com.