Episode 447 Gina Elise Healing Veterans with Pin-Ups For Vets Transcript
This transcript is from episode 447 with guest Gina Elise.
Scott DeLuzio: [00:00:00] Hey everyone, welcome back to Drive On. I’m your host, Scott DeLuzio, and today my guest is Gina Elise, the founder of Pin-Ups for Vets. Gina graciously left her blossoming career in the corporate world to focus on, uh, full time work for her nonprofit organization, uh, that’s helping out veterans, uh, And we’ll get into that in just a bit.
We’ll learn a little bit more about her journey and the amazing work that she’s doing now, supporting the veteran in the military community. We met at the Military Influencer Conference a couple of weeks ago, and it was, uh, you know, amazing to meet you, amazing, uh, event in general, but it was amazing to meet you there, Gina.
And first off, welcome to the show. Really glad to have you here.
Gina Elise: Thank you so much for having me.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. Um, so I guess maybe to get started here, can you tell us a little bit more about kind of the idea behind Pin-Ups for Vets and how you connect that, that vintage allure of the 1940s pinup style with, uh, your [00:01:00] vision for helping out the veteran community?
Gina Elise: Yes. So it was basically back in 2006 and there were a lot of stories coming out in the news about our troops coming back from Iraq needing medical care. And I’ve always been a huge fan of World War II nose art. Back during World War II, they used to paint these beautiful women on the sides of aircraft, uh, to kind of boost the morale of the troops and remind them of what they were fighting for.
They called it nose art because it was painted on the nose of the plane. And I thought I would take my love of that beautiful art. Bring it into today and create a project that could support our veterans and troops today. Um, and that was kind of, you know, the origin of, of the organization. In addition, my grandfather was also a World War II Army veteran.
Yes.
Scott DeLuzio: And so, You said, so 2006 is when you kind of first started having this idea, but you’re, you’re coming up on your 20th anniversary here pretty soon. And, um, you [00:02:00] know, so you, you started off as, you know, it was just like a fundraiser if I, if I’m correct on this, it was just a fundraiser to, uh, help for like one specific need, wasn’t it?
And then it kind of. Blew up into this bigger organization,
Gina Elise: Yes, yes. So I initially only planned to do this for one year, like a side project. I was a hotel manager, um, at the time, and just, yeah, I was doing this on the side as a way to give back, um, a creative and fun way to give back. My background is in theater. I majored in theater at UCLA, and I was a dancer for my whole life.
So I’m very heavy into the arts. And so I like creative things. Um, and I also like creating things from the ground up, um, sort of that entrepreneur, uh, spirit in me. Um, and so I, you know, I created the first calendar. I had no idea, Scott, what I was doing, although I had a friend that was an amazing photographer.
And so we created the first one and I, you know, the intention was to donate the proceeds to a local veterans hospital so [00:03:00] they could buy some new rehab equipment. Um, and then. In that same year, I started delivering the calendars as gifts of appreciation to the veterans in the hospital. And I kind of started seeing, you know, the impact that that was making.
I would get dressed up, you know, like this very World War II style, the red lips, the cat eyeliner, the flower in the hair and all that. And I would start to see, you know, they would kind of forget about where they were for a little bit, you know, when When you’re going through a very hard time, it’s nice to have distractions, um, just to take your mind off of it for a little bit.
So I would take the calendars into the hospital and spend some time with the veterans, um, and then we ended up donating, um, the proceeds that year to a local VA hospital here in California. Um, and also started shipping care packages to deploy troops because we would give people the option on the website.
You can get a calendar for yourself. You can order one for us to deliver, and when I say us, at the time it was me, to deliver into the hospitals, [00:04:00] or you can buy a calendar to ship to a deployed service member. So there’s all these options, you know, different ways to support. And so I only thought, One year and then our initial supporters shout out to mill bloggers at the time if you’re You know familiar they would call it mill bloggers troops that would be coming back that would blog about you know, what they were, you know about their time in Iraq and I connected with a lot of the mill bloggers and they started kind of getting the word out there about what I was doing and so Cut to the end of the first year.
I thought that was it. And then our initial supporters started asking, well, when’s like the next calendar going to come out? And I was like, the next calendar? Like I only thought I was going to do this for one year. So I’m like, okay, one more year. So I, I did it for another year, donated the money to a military hospital down in San Diego, uh, the Naval Medical Center down there and was doing a little bit more [00:05:00] visits.
Um. Keep in mind this whole time I’m working in the hotel and I, I kept my lives, you know, I don’t talk about this all the time, but I kept my lives very separate. So I was the corporate sales manager during the week, business suits, everything. On the weekends on my time off, I’d be a pinup. So I didn’t want anyone in the hotel to kind of find out about what I was doing on the side.
It was a very, you know, um, Just it was a corporate environment. I didn’t know what they would say. And I was the youngest person on the sales team. So I kept these two like double life very, uh, quiet. Um, there was two times though. I don’t know if you’re interested.
Scott DeLuzio: Oh yeah, go ahead. Go
Gina Elise: Yeah, there was two times that, um, my cover was almost blown.
So, I got an email from the LA Business Journal, which is a business publication in Los Angeles. And they said, you’re going to be, or you’re nominated for Volunteer of [00:06:00] the Year. And I said, oh my gosh, this is amazing. Uh, and I was looking at the email, where is the ceremony? Guess where it was.
Scott DeLuzio: Oh my gosh. Not at your hotel.
Gina Elise: And my own hotels got, so I thought, oh no, now people are going to know what I’m doing.
Um, and so honestly, I went down for the ceremony at lunch, I told my colleagues, like, hey, I’m going to lunch. I ended up winning. That category. I had to go up, make a speech in front of like hundreds of LA business people. For sure. I thought like someone on the food and beverage team was going to say something.
I walked back with my award tucked in my blazer, back to my desk and nobody said anything. And I, yeah. And then the other time, uh, my counterpart walks into my office and she said, Hey, so, um, I heard you on the radio this morning on the way to work and I said, okay, Please don’t say anything shit cuz I was I was doing radio interviews, you know, like I [00:07:00] and yeah It was a crazy time for four years.
I did this guy four years. I was doing both And so at the end of four years I ended up Just making the decision to resign because I felt like this is my passion and I wanted to see if I could grow the nonprofit full time. And so I said, okay, I’ll try it for a year. I’ll see if I can focus all my efforts.
I’m pretty like, I know my work, my own work ethic, and I’m pretty like driven. And so I thought, okay, if I can just focus all my energy on this, maybe I can make it happen. So I left. Resigned. Um, my dad thought I was crazy with that decision, but, um, you know, you got to follow your passion and, uh, your purpose, which I discovered that was my purpose.
And yeah, and here we are, uh, almost at 20 years, but a huge change happened. Um, I would [00:08:00] say about the. Was it the seventh year in? I started getting messages from female veterans asking me, Hey Gina, you know, we see what you’re doing. Can we help you? Like, can we volunteer with you on these hospital visits?
And I said, yes, that would be amazing. So I started getting the ladies to volunteer with me and Scott, it was, it was this veteran to veteran connection that I cannot provide, right? I’m not a veteran. I’m just a patriotic civilian. But when I would introduce the ladies. You know, the patients would say, wait, she, cause they’re dressed up like me.
They’ll say, wait, she’s a Marine. She’s a Navy veteran. Yes. Oh my gosh. Where did you serve? Where did you serve? It was like this instant, like brotherhood, sisterhood. And so, you know, not only was it, um, beneficial, I think for the patients to have that connection, but it was also beneficial for the ladies that were volunteering with us, um, just to kind of have that sense of brotherhood, sisterhood again.
And. Yeah, so I, [00:09:00] I, I, that, so then I realized. Hey, I need to start putting them in the calendar because I was meeting these incredible women and I wanted to start to spotlight their stories. And so, I think it was around 2014, I started, I took, you know, was taking myself out of the calendar and started putting the ladies and we would do these makeovers on the calendar shoot for the women.
Turn them into pin-ups for the day and then feature them in the calendar. So now the whole calendar is all female veterans. I’m on the cover still. Um, but we have, you know, amazing women from, I mean, just for the 2025 calendar, we have a lieutenant colonel. We have, um, A Seahawk pilot who you met, Jen Benny.
Um, I mean, we have two Purple Heart recipients in this calendar. And in the history of the U. S. military, there’s only around 500 female Purple Heart recipients, female Purple Heart recipients. And so we have two of them in the new [00:10:00] calendar for 2025. I mean, the women are amazing. They have about a combined service of, I think, 117 years.
And to me, it’s really a way to start telling their stories, you know, because I think when In general, people think of a veteran, they think of a man, and they don’t think of all the amazing women that have stepped up to serve our country. So, I like to think that getting their stories out there is sort of shifting the perspective or perception of what a veteran is.
And it’s a way to start sharing, you know, these incredible experiences, um, of these inspirational women.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. And when, to your point, what you were saying earlier, when you go into these, uh, hospitals and you have this group of women who, who go in and they start talking, there’s that Instant connection. I mean, it happens all the time on this show where I’ll be interviewing another veteran who just meeting for the very first time, like [00:11:00] in conversation, other than, you know, email that we might be exchanging to set up the interview and that type of thing.
Um, I meet him for the first time. Like we, we kind of had a, you know, a little chat before we started recording and then, then we start recording by the end of the episode. I feel like I know the person, like I’ve known him for years, you know? And, and I’m sure when you go. Guys go into the hospitals. Um, there’s a similar connection where it’s like, there’s just common language, you just come in, you know, ways that you, you interact and you know, it
Gina Elise: Like, little inside jokes, you know, little military slang. I mean, I see it when I’m with the girls, you know, in the hospital. It’s amazing.
Scott DeLuzio: And I, I have to imagine too, some of, and I haven’t been, uh, to any of the hospitals, like to see the interactions taking place, but I have to imagine some of the older veterans who are in there, maybe the World War II era, uh, veterans who are in these hospitals. Um, when you go and you see them, to them, I have to imagine it’s probably pretty nice [00:12:00] to get a little bit of that nostalgia, uh, to, to see people kind of dressed up the way that. They, they might’ve used to be dressed up
Gina Elise: they’re shocked. I mean, they’re shocked. They all say, am I dreaming, you know, and like, this is the best thing that’s happened to me all day, and that’s just so nice to hear, you know, especially a lot of them can go for weeks, maybe even months, with not getting any visitors, you know, they’re just seeing, like, the hospital staff every day, and so, yeah, I think it’s just, like, a nice surprise for them, and, you know, It is that little bit of nostalgia, that classiness, you know, that, um, yeah, it might bring them back, um, and, yeah, I think it’s really fun, and the ladies love, like, they love seeing the reactions, too, um, I mean, a lot of times, um, Uh, the Vietnam veterans will start to cry because especially them, like, they did not get the proper things when they got back.
And so just [00:13:00] feel that appreciation, you know, we come in the room and we’re thanking them and asking them like, uh, just questions to start the conversation, you know, and where did you serve and, um, you know, where are you from? And just, just a little conversation. I mean, it’s a token of appreciation and a conversation.
I like to think that sometimes it’s the smallest gestures that can make the biggest impact and we have some really amazing stuff happen like on these visits. Um, you know, things I’ll never forget the rest of my life.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And when you go in like for, and I’m, I don’t want to like minimize at all what it is that you guys are doing, cause it is impactful, but you know, to, to you and the other ladies who are going into these, these hospitals and making these visits, um, to you, you’re, you’re taking, yeah, you know, maybe a few hours out of your day and you’re going in and, you know, that’s.
That’s what it is to you. And obviously you’re, you’re probably taken away. Probably is meaningful to you and everyone else who goes in. Um, but to your point, some of these people [00:14:00] haven’t seen anyone for maybe weeks or maybe even potentially months. And to have this special visit, it’s like. That just made the whole, whole bay or maybe even the whole visit, uh, the hospital stay, you know?
Gina Elise: like before we leave the hospital, you know, the staff is asking, well, when are you coming back, I’m like, we’re not even done yet. You know? Um, so it’s nice, you know, to get that kind of reception and to see like, the impact. Um, you know, just, just a few like instances of some my favorite memories,
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. Please.
Gina Elise: when I was, I, I went into a room and I always, you know, ask the veteran questions and even if I think they’re nonverbal, because a lot of times.
People can understand even if they’re nonverbal. Uh, but this, this gentleman, he was answering my questions very quietly. Um, but he was answering them and I left the room and the nursing staff rushed up to me to tell me that this vet has suffered a TBI and that was the first time that he spoke in a month.
And [00:15:00] yeah. And so I, I like to say it’s the power of the pinup. Power of the pinup.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. Um, and I, I think, you know, that’s, that’s just, um, you know, kind of a testament to what it is that you guys are doing as far as the service, uh, to these veterans. Um, You know, obviously we, we talk about the, the service that, that service members provide to the country, but, um, sometimes we don’t think about like, what can we do to give back to them?
You know, we, sure we can, we can talk about, okay, what policy needs to be passed and, you know, laws and, you know, all this kind of stuff. And, um, but what can an individual do? To give back to those people. And, and sometimes that means the world to people. Um, you know, when, when you have someone like yourself or, you know, any of these other ladies who, uh, go into these VA hospitals and make, make these visits, like I was saying before, I could just change, change the world.[00:16:00]
Their whole outlook on their whole situation, right? And, um, you know, lawmakers in Washington or, you know, wherever they’re, they can pass all these laws and do all these things. But sometimes it could take years before that, that one individual sees any kind of change, uh, from whatever laws get passed. And so like, what can an individual do?
Right. And, and, you know, you started this almost 20 years ago now, um, thinking that this was just a one off kind of thing and yeah, we’ll, we’ll, we’ll take some pictures, we’ll put a calendar together, we’ll raise some money. And, and how many, I mean, I don’t even know if you can give a ballpark estimate.
Like how many people do you think you’ve actually been able to impact this way? Mm
Gina Elise: So as far as like our visits, I know. So we have visited over 20, 000 veterans personally. This is like individual visits. Um, You know, I have the map on our website, so we’re currently in the [00:17:00] middle of a 50 state hospital tour, um, and the goal is to visit at least one VA hospital, military hospital, or state veterans home in every state.
Um, and we usually visit around 100 patients. Um, and, you know, we have visited over 100 facilities across the U. S. and some of these, you know, we’ve gone back to multiple times, um, especially the ones here in California. It’s easier for us. Um, so as far as, like, the individual visits, um, Um, you know, it’s been 20, 000, as far as like the rehab equipment, that’s hard to say because the rehab equipment that we’re donating, it’s being used by thousands of veterans across the United States, you know, it’s being used daily, uh, and so it’s hard to say as far as like that impact, um, but I, I did want to read you just quickly from a letter, um,
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, sure.
Gina Elise: we’re talking about like the, you know, how one individual can make an impact Really instill like a sense of hope in somebody.[00:18:00]
So I received a letter a few years like after I did this specific visit, but I just wanted to read a part of it to you. So Dear Gina, I recently came across your Facebook page and remembered you from your visit to the VA Medical Center in Blank. And I’ll leave that, you know, just for privacy. Um, I was a patient in the psychiatry ward suffering from severe PTSD and depression after my tour in Fallujah, Iraq with the Marines.
I had very little hope and felt a tremendous amount of guilt and loneliness. It was definitely one of the hardest times in my life. I cannot possibly express in words how grateful I am that you visited our unit in the hospital. Your kindness, generosity, and smile made a horrible experience for me, a little more tolerable.
Um, he goes on to, uh, tell me a little bit about his life. He said, um, uh, in Fallujah, I was trusted to be the lead on our patrols and combat missions and had received a commendation after being [00:19:00] ambushed at very close distance by the enemy. To go from being a highly regarded marine infantryman in combat to a patient on a locked psychiatric ward was one of the most dehumanizing experiences.
Experiences I’ve ever been through. I was the only veteran from the Iraq war there. I felt weak, embarrassed, and lonely, but your calendar and your visit made me feel a little bit like a hero Again, it was a scary place to be. Thank you so much for that visit, and I’m looking forward to sending the next calendar out to a few patients in the hospital.
So it was just such a nice. I don’t know. It’s like I did not expect that. This is a couple years after I had visited, you know, and just to get that out of the blue just shows it, that literally shows that time that you spend with someone while they’re going through a very intense, you know, challenge in their life can, can have a huge impact on them and give them that sense of hope and, and that sense of like giving them back their identity again.
Scott DeLuzio: Well, yeah. And especially for someone like the, the [00:20:00] person that you were just talking about from that letter, uh, who went from being on top of his game, uh, you know, like you can’t touch this guy. He, he is, he is, uh, you know, as, as good as it gets to being where he was in a, you know, locked, uh, psychiatric ward, um, and how dehumanizing that must feel.
Um, you know, I’ve never been there myself, so I don’t, I don’t know exactly what he was feeling. Um, but, yeah. I gotta imagine it’s, it’s nothing good and when someone comes around who’s not wearing, you know, I only know this from the movies, but you know, wearing the white, you know, jacket and you know, the, you know, the coats and, and, uh, you know, coming around and giving them the medicines and doing all this kind of stuff when it’s someone other than that, who’s wearing some, you know, some of, you know, something flowery and something that’s exciting and bright, you know, and, and it’s like, Wow.
This person took time out of their day to come and talk to me. Like that’s pretty
Gina Elise: it was like a [00:21:00] little reminder of like, what’s outside of the walls, you know, and like a little hope of like, what’s to be, like, it’s not always gonna look like this, you know?
Scott DeLuzio: right. Even though you might be going through something horrible right now, it’s not always going to be that way. And there is hope for something. And that’s, that’s something, honestly, like for the listeners who might be struggling in their own way with whatever it is that they’re going through. Um, there is hope, right?
And, and even someone who, who had it so bad that they were, you know, You know, locked up in a psychiatric ward, um, they, they got to a point where they, they were able to express gratitude and, and, you know, it’s a lot of times when you’re down and depressed and, and everything, you can’t even be grateful for something as, as, uh, you know, significant as this and, but then, you know, he was able to kind of turn things around and, and now
Gina Elise: And you’ll never believe this guy. Guess what? He’s a doctor now. Yeah. Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: That’s [00:22:00] amazing.
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: And that’s all. And you know what? That’s awesome too, because, um, you know, in addition to, um, you know, your, your visit and the, you know, a little bit of hope that maybe he got that day, maybe it was a lot of hope. I don’t know, you know, degrees of, of hope or whatever, but, um, but again, for the listeners, It’s not like it just gets better so that it’s, you can just get by, right?
It gets better to the point where now you can actually thrive. And you can, you can do these great things. You can go out and if you want to be a doctor, you can be a doctor. If, if that’s in, in your future. If you want to be, you know, whatever else it is that you want to be. Um, You know, maybe it’s maybe my goal is I want to be a great husband.
I want to be a great, you know, wife. I want to be a great, you know, whatever it is that you are, go, go be a great one of those. And, and, you know, there is hope for you, even if, if right now you’re not that, for whatever reason, there’s hope. And,
Gina Elise: And it’s, it’s, I think, I feel like it takes baby steps. You know, it’s like [00:23:00] one little thing, especially when you’re, you know, you are that low. It’s like one little thing after another. It’s, it’s, you’re not going to get better. Like all of a sudden, right. It’s takes like little tiny step after step after step to get to, you know, a better place.
Scott DeLuzio: right. Yeah. And I’m sure he didn’t, he didn’t start med school the day after
Gina Elise: no,
Scott DeLuzio: visited, right. You know what I mean? Like, but okay. From, from there, there’s that, okay, there’s now I have hope,
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: you know, someone, someone actually gives a damn and, you know, uh, and it, then, then you can kind of build on that, like you were saying, right,
Gina Elise: I think like that makes a huge difference for people to know that other people care. You know, cause I think that’s, I feel that like sometimes when we’re in the hospitals is like it just to know that other people care and like you matter because it can be so isolating in there, you know, and just the fact that, you know, [00:24:00] sometimes we’ll tell them, Oh, our supporters are like getting these as gifts for you.
So just for them to know that people out. on the outside are remembering them. Like that is just like a huge recognition and I, I don’t know, just it can give you a sense of, of hope and happiness and, and, and, um, joy that someone is remembering you and hasn’t forgotten you.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. I know we we’ve done a lot of, of talking about, um, you know, the, the impact on the veterans in the, the hospital that you guys go and visit. But, um, you know, like you mentioned, you, you mentioned the other women who are in the calendars, um, the other, the other female veterans, uh, I’ve met.
And spoken to several of them at the military influencer conference that I was, I was talking about earlier. Um, I actually had, uh, Jennifer Marshall on the show, uh, a couple of weeks ago. Um, and so, you know, all, all of them that I spoke to were absolutely [00:25:00] wonderful people and, and to your point about what, you know, when you go into the rooms, uh, talking to people, they were super easy to talk to, like super personable, you know, great personalities throughout all of them.
Um, you know, so, um, But I want to turn this, this question around a bit. Um, so in what ways do you think that the work that they do and you do, um, Helps you guys specifically, like, so how does it, how does it,
Gina Elise: How did it help them?
Scott DeLuzio: yeah. Does it, how does it help like you going into the hospital or, you know, any of them, have they ever, you know, given you any, any kind of stories
Gina Elise: Oh, huge,
Scott DeLuzio: how that helps them?
Gina Elise: Yes. And it was something that I didn’t expect. Like, I always knew that this would help the patients. Um, and that’s why we’re doing it for the patients. But little did I know that a side effect, would be the impact on our very own veteran ambassadors. And, you know, for the longest time, it’s kind of been hard for me to nail down.
Like, what is it? Like, why do they love it so much? [00:26:00] Um, and I, I kind of, I kind of came up with like an acronym that I think can kind of describe it as so purpose, identity, camaraderie. Um, so I’ll kind of go over those. So I feel that. When our veterans are in the military, that there’s a very strong sense of purpose and they’re working towards a mission, um, and when they get out, a lot of times they feel like a little bit disconnected because they don’t have that same purpose, you know, when they’re in.
And so, doing this. They call it, the ladies call it service after service. So it’s a way for them to give back, um, to their fellow brothers and sisters again. Um, after getting out of the military. So, um, I think finding that purpose again, um, identity, I feel that this has been a [00:27:00] way for them to reclaim their femininity after getting out of the military.
A lot of times the ladies had to put that femininity on hold. Part of their identity as a woman on the back burner to survive in a male dominated service. Um, and they love Scott getting dressed up. They asked me, when’s the next event? When’s the next event? Sometimes, you know, these ladies go from having zero, you know, vintage dresses.
Now their whole closet is all vintage dresses. It’s so, it’s amazing to me how like this has impacted them and they love it. Like they love doing the hair and makeup. It’s, it’s just like a fun part of being a woman. Getting to embrace that feminine side and so kind of getting to, like, reclaim a part of that identity, um, has been amazing for them.
I, I love seeing, like, how happy they get, you know, getting dressed up, um, and then C, camaraderie. So, uh, this has created an unexpected sisterhood, um, I did [00:28:00] not plan this, but the ladies are so tight, as you have seen, you know, they are such an amazing support network for each other. It’s like, It’s like the kind of how they would be a team in the military is same thing now getting out like they’re a team again, that camaraderie, that sisterhood, one of our ambassadors, who’s a Marine veteran, Javon, about volunteering with us.
She said, I came for the service, but I stayed for the sisterhood. So that sisterhood of the women is just. It has been so important, you know, as a way to connect with each other, support each other. It’s something I did not plan, never expected it, but it’s such a like a lovely thing to come out of, of our ambassadors friendship with each other.
Scott DeLuzio: Well, first off, I love that you use an acronym for this. Um, I think everyone, everyone listening, you know, anyone who has any connection to the military understands that acronyms [00:29:00] are flown all over the
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: we, we use them all the time. So PIC, that’s perfect. I like it. Um, Um, just an observation from the Military Influencer Conference, um, I, whenever I would see anyone dressed up, you know, any of the, the women who are involved in, uh, the, these calendars, they, by the way, they, they were all dressed up like pretty much the entire conference.
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: I don’t think I saw any of them not, you know, with their hair done up and the makeup and the, you know, dresses. I,
Gina Elise: They represent.
Scott DeLuzio: They represented very well. Yes. But I don’t think that to your point of the camaraderie and the sisterhood and sticking together and all that. I don’t think I ever saw any of them by themselves.
I think they all were like traveling in
Gina Elise: Yeah!
Scott DeLuzio: It was like, it was like, Oh, there they go. And they’re all going this way. And then they’re coming back over here. And,
Gina Elise: have become, and it’s fascinating, like I get to see it every year when we shoot the calendar, like [00:30:00] how fast they become friends. It’s really amazing. Like I see that military connection, not only in the hospitals with them, our ambassadors and the patients, but I see it with our ambassadors and ambassadors together because they just become friends so fast on the calendar shoot.
It’s amazing to see. I love it.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And you know, the, the veterans, I think in general, when you have that, that baseline, like there’s a common ground, like common understanding or whatever, because of the service, it makes it easier to come together. But then you add this one more common bond connection together. Now you’ve got these two things that they’re, they can share and.
It seems like that’s how they’re, they’re going to come together a whole lot quicker. Right.
Gina Elise: yeah, and it, you’re right, it’s like the military, it’s like the sandwich, you know, it’s like the military connection, and on top of that, now they’re a pinup, you know, a veteran pinup, it’s like, they feel, I think they just [00:31:00] feel like, so special to be a part of the group, um, Just, you know, with everything the group is doing to give back.
And so, yeah, I think it’s like all these things combined gives them that connection. Um, and I, I love the quote that one of our ambassadors said about, about this, about kind of like the femininity aspect. She said, there’s nothing that says I can’t be a hard charging Marine and a lipstick wearing pinup.
So I choose to be both. So
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And, and yeah. And to your point, I mean, when they, when they were a Marine or a Sailor or a soldier, whatever it was that they, they did in the military, um, you know, the, the uniforms are very, well, they’re uniform and it doesn’t matter, you know, men or women, like they’re, they’re pretty much standard and.
You know, you do lose some of that, um, you know, you’re not wearing, you know, uh, you know, a nice dress or you’re not doing the makeup and the hair and everything the way, the way you would, right?
Gina Elise: individual, individuality is gone, but that’s the purpose, you know? Um,
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And it’s not nothing against the [00:32:00] military. Like that’s the way it’s supposed to be in the military.
Right.
Gina Elise: Yes.
Scott DeLuzio: I got to imagine it. It’s nice to have a little bit of individuality and it’s a lot of times, like. You know, guys get out and all of a sudden they, they, you know, a week later, they got a full beard and, you know,
Gina Elise: Oh, yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: that kind of thing. Right. It’s like, well, this is me now. And, uh, you know, like it or leave it.
I really don’t
Gina Elise: I’ve seen some of my ambassadors get, like, nose rings and dye their hair. Like, yeah, it’s like, freedom!
Scott DeLuzio: right. But it’s, it’s, you know, nice that they can, they can do this in a, in a way that, um, that makes them feel good and, and also makes other people feel good as well, um, through, through these visits and in the calendars and everything else that they, that you guys do. Right. Um, now. For the, the donation piece of this.
So, I mean, obviously there’s the, the visits, which is a morale booster. That’s a, it’s a wonderful thing that you guys are doing, but, but also,
Gina Elise: didn’t, I didn’t mention that, or maybe I didn’t mention that we only have one state left. So [00:33:00] this, it was actually like a very big week for us because we completed our 49th state in North Dakota. And so now we only have one state left, which is Alaska. Um, so that’ll be a big trip, hopefully next spring.
So that’s, we’re getting close, close
Scott DeLuzio: when, when they thaw out a bit,
Gina Elise: Yes. We’re waiting, waiting for the winter.
Scott DeLuzio: Um, yeah, no, but that, that’ll be great. And then, then, you know, all 50 states, uh, you’ll, you’ll have hit. And, uh, that, that’s, that’s pretty amazing. Um, that. Veterans across the country, it doesn’t matter where they were, uh, have gotten some benefit from this and, and you guys are touching lives all over the place.
Um, which is pretty incredible. Um, but you also, you mentioned the donation piece and like what, like donating equipment to these hospitals. Right. And. The, this equipment, it’s not cheap, right? Like this stuff is pretty high end, hundreds of thousands of dollars for, for some of this [00:34:00] stuff. Right. So clearly the organization needs donations, needs, needs money in order to be able to, to do this and support, you know, trips to go to these different places and, and all the things that you guys do, um, tell us about some of the equipment that you have donated and, um.
You know, uh, how, uh, uh, you know, how, how you, uh, you know, envision, like, you know, future donations and what other type of needs that you guys might have,
Gina Elise: Now the organization was kind of founded on, you know, donating rehab equipment. Like this is, so healthcare is a big deal in my family. Like my grandfather that served in the army, he was a pharmacist for the army. Um, and then, so that was my mom’s father. And then she married a pharmacist. So my dad’s a pharmacist.
So a lot of healthcare in the family. So I feel like that’s why. You know, the organization is really focused on healthcare because I understand like how important that is. Um, [00:35:00] so as far as the rehab equipment that we’ve donated, um, we, I like to think of us as like the VA hospital fairy godmother, and we kind of ask them like, what’s on your wishlist?
What can you not afford that, you know, because of your budgetary restrictions. And then we like to get them, um, You know, what they need. And you were mentioning a little bit earlier, like, just sometimes about like the bureaucracy of getting stuff done. For me, I like to get stuff done fast. So it’s like, what do you need?
Let’s get it to you so you can, so the veterans can start benefiting, you know, from this rehab equipment right away. I don’t want this to take like years for, for you to get. So I think that’s like a reason. Part of the reason why I started the organization is like, I’m kind of impatient, and like, and I like stuff done quick, like, I like, I’m like an action person, you know, um, [00:36:00] and so, so just, So an example, I’ve like printed out a list of some of the rehab equipment.
It’s a huge variety because it depends on the needs of that hospital. For instance, we donated a hand cycle trike and the hospital was saying we will use the hand cycle trike for individuals with limited lower extremity abilities, the veterans with more significant or complete spinal spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, progressive disorders, or loss of limbs.
Um, we donated this thing called a true stretch cage. This enables us to assist our veterans to be able to perform stretches for almost all the joints in the body, especially the ones that are advancing in age who are otherwise incapable of stretching in the upright position. Um, we donated something called a Graston tool set, which is an evidence based form of instrument which helps, um, veterans.
Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization that enables clinicians to address soft tissue lesions. It can kind of can be thought of a massage technique. [00:37:00] Um, I mean, I can go on and on with like the, it’s just different, you know, different items. A leg curl extension, um, They said the equipment, um, has expanded the rehab recovery options for our post operative patients as well as any veterans needing to strengthen their lower extremities.
Um, I mean, I, again, I can go on and on with, like, the specifics of, like, what the rehab equipment is, but it really depends on, like, the hospital and what their needs are. Um, Yeah. So we’ve donated something called like a reaction time tester that, uh, helps veterans to see like the reaction time, like when they’re driving.
I mean, it’s, I’ve learned myself about so many different kinds of rehab equipment cause I’m like constantly ordering it. So, yeah. And when you were asking about the impact, I wish I could have, you know, like a number, Scott, because, but I don’t, because. This rehab equipment is being used across the country in VA [00:38:00] hospitals every day, um, by hundreds if not thousands of veterans.
So, I don’t have a number for that, but I just like knowing that it’s helping veterans in their recoveries.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. When you have, uh, you, you mentioned the bureaucracy. I mentioned it a little bit earlier, uh, you know, when, when you mentioned, you know, the, that type of thing, um, It sucks. You know, there’s no, there’s no way around it. It sucks that the bureaucracy exists. Um, but it, but it does. And, um, when something is important enough, like, you know, helping these people recover from one thing or another, um, obviously there’s, you just mentioned a handful of the items that you have donated, but just from those, there’s a wide range of conditions that can be treated with those, those types of things.
So people are being helped, you know, across the country with. All these different, uh, pieces of equipment, um, some of it [00:39:00] very, very expensive, uh, equipment, right? And, um The, the individual donations, some people may, may see like, Oh, you know, I’m, I’m, you know, donating five bucks, 10 bucks, 20 bucks, you know, like, is that, is that really going to make an impact?
Well,
Gina Elise: Everyone
Scott DeLuzio: yeah, exactly. Every bit helps, but you know, like when you take that 5 and then you, you multiply it by, you know, however many people make a donation.
Gina Elise: Yeah. It
Scott DeLuzio: a bigger impact, right? And so, so when, when you can consolidate all that, and then you can kind of judge, okay, well, what, where’s the greatest need right now?
And what can we, where can we make this money stretch the furthest? And how can we help it as many people as possible? Um, that, that’s where, um, where organizations like yours come, come in and, Uh, can actually make some, some real positive change in the, um, the hospitals and in the, um, the, the services that get offered at those hospitals, because sometimes, um, sometimes the hospital, if they don’t have the equipment, they might just say, [00:40:00] well, sorry, we can’t really help you,
Gina Elise: Oh yeah. Yeah. I mean, the
Scott DeLuzio: it that way.
Gina Elise: are, I think they don’t even believe it. Like when I contact them, you know, they, they’re shocked that someone is, you know, this organization is coming in and, and willing to help them get these items that now they can, that they’ve been wanting like to help their veterans and now they have it.
Um, so it’s really nice to get to hear from the rehab teams about how the equipment is impacting them.
Scott DeLuzio: And when you started going to these hospitals, just to visit the veterans who are in the hospitals, did you just, just call up and say, Hey, you know, I want to come in and just start, you know, visiting some people. Or did you show up or like, how did
Gina Elise: No, no, you can’t just show up,
Scott DeLuzio: I didn’t think you could just show up, but you know, how, how does that work?
Because I would imagine that they, they probably need to, you know, you know, figure out, you know, who are these people coming
Gina Elise: he needs to vet us.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, exactly.
Gina Elise: Um, so I, I work with the, uh, volunteer services [00:41:00] department, um, in order to, uh, schedule visits. And I, I know that like so many of them now across the United States, so it’s like a little bit easier now. Um, but yeah, I would just kind of cold call. Hey, uh, I want to see if I could come visit the patients and hand out some gifts of appreciation.
And, um, you know, usually they were, they were excited about that.
Scott DeLuzio: That’s excellent. Yeah. Um, and I, and I think when you get people who actually care and actually want to show up and, and, and make the, the, those, uh, those veterans who are there make their day a little bit brighter. Um, yeah, of course we’re going to want to, want to bring these people
Gina Elise: And especially now that, you know, I’ll explain to them, Hey, it’s, it’s going to be like these two female veterans that are coming. So it’s like veterans coming to visit veterans,
Scott DeLuzio: yeah, right.
Gina Elise: nice thing.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. Now. I know there’s, there’s a lot of issues outside of the [00:42:00] VA, um, you know, like where, where people are not getting the help that they need, not getting the services and support, you know, there’s a lot of homeless veterans, uh, that are out there. Um, are there, there anything that you guys do that, that kind of helps support, uh, those types of veterans as well?
So talk to us a little bit about that. How does, how
Gina Elise: Yeah, it’s kind of interesting because I feel like a lot of nonprofits are focused in on like one issue, but we have a number of issues that we’re trying to help within the veteran community. So whether it’s like the rehab equipment and health care of the veterans, morale, for both hospitalized veterans and deployed troops, and then homeless veterans.
So In the past, we have partnered with other organizations that are supporting homeless veterans to try to make an even bigger impact. For instance, we have partnered with nonprofits Goodwill and a nonprofit called the Glamour Project to do sort of these morale boosting makeovers on female veterans that are trying to get back on their feet.
[00:43:00] We’ve partnered with organizations like U. S. Vets and another one called the Kansas City Community Veterans Project. Um, we’ve bought Uh, housewares like bedding, you know, sheets, pots and pans, mops for veterans that are transitioning from being homeless, getting back on their feet again. So just even like these little housewares, you know, can, I feel like can make them feel like a person again.
Um, yeah, so these are just a few of the things that we’ve done, you know, for homeless veterans.
Scott DeLuzio: Absolutely. Yeah. And I, I I’ve had, um, folks on who, uh, you know, do other work that helps support, uh, homeless veterans. And, and to your point, what, what they said is that, you know, just having those little, you know, comfort items that you, you, you kind of take for granted having, you know, it could even just be something as small as toiletries or, um, you know, a laundry basket or, you know, something like that, that, that you, um, You might take for [00:44:00] granted, um, but if you don’t have it and you don’t have the ability to get it,
Gina Elise: These are like the basics.
Scott DeLuzio: the basic, like I’ll just call them the basic necessities, like the, you know, the real, real kind of, uh, basics.
But if you don’t have those things, um, and you don’t have a way to acquire them, that it’s really. Almost dehumanizing. And it kind of makes you feel kind of, kind of crappy. And, and so,
Gina Elise: like the basics you need so you can focus on getting a job, you know, your mental health. It’s just like those basic necessities to just, you know, Yeah, just keep you grounded, you got, you know, your main stuff taken care of, bedding, sheets, pots and pans, you know, that stuff to clean your place, so, so you can move forward with your life and focus on these other things, again, like getting a job, your mental health, like your doctor’s appointment, that kind of stuff.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And, and, and when you finally do find a place [00:45:00] to, you know, an apartment or, or something to go move into. Um, but if you don’t have any of those things, pots and pans, bedding, uh, you know, all that kind of stuff, towels to take a shower or whatever, um, then it’s like, okay, now I gotta go figure out all this stuff now, too.
And. Right. It’s like that. It’s, it’s easy enough. We let’s, let’s handle that. Right. Um, you know, I’m not, I’m not, I don’t want to say like, Oh, it’s, it’s just easy. Anyone can do it because obviously there’s some people who need support. Right. But, um, but it’s like, there are other, there are other bigger things that they need to be worrying about.
Gina Elise: Oh, totally,
Scott DeLuzio: focus on that stuff. And so it’s wonderful that you guys are focused on that type of stuff as well. Um, You know, and, and the, the global reach really, uh, if you think about it, because you send the care packages to troops that are deployed all around the world. Um, you know, a bunch of, uh, those comfort items from home go in, into those types of packages.
Um, I know when you’re starting, it was just you packing them. Uh, I’m assuming that it’s more than just you at this point. You probably have other people [00:46:00] who are helping out, right?
Gina Elise: Exactly. And we ship, you know, they request most often the calendars, like they want. Yeah. Like, can we get some calendars, like for our team? So we’re, we’re shipping the calendars a lot. We’ll ship like our challenge coins, sometimes lost for shirts, like our Pin Us Revenge shirts. Like that’s the kind of stuff that they actually have are requesting from us.
Um, I think it’s just like a nice morale boost for them when they get that. So yeah, that’s what we’re shipping.
Scott DeLuzio: Absolutely. I can, I can totally understand that. Um, you know, and, and. And having, you know, having been deployed, having like a piece of normalcy from home, like something like that, you can look at and be like, this is America, this is home. This is what I’m fighting for is, you know, is, is something like that.
Right. Um, and when, when we were deployed, someone, uh, one of our guys, he wrote, wrote home and said, send soil, go in the yard, dig some, some dirt, [00:47:00] some American soil and grass seed. And they, they shipped him soil and grass seed. And he took this little, um, it was probably, I don’t know, two by two, uh, foot, little, uh, piece of wood that he put together, filled it with the soil, put the grass seed in, watered it every day.
And, uh, we had a little piece of American soil in Afghanistan. We go walk on, on the American grass and, uh, American soil and, and everything like that. And it was, it was just a little piece of home, but it, it, it was, Morale booster. And it
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: There’s a box with dirt and
Gina Elise: I
Scott DeLuzio: if you think about it, but like to us, it was like, like protect it at all costs.
Like this is not getting messed up, you know, uh, that kind of thing. So, um, you know, and, and when you think about, you know, the, the troops deployed overseas, just, you know, having something normal, you know, outside of, you know, Whatever [00:48:00] the war zone is that, that they’re, they’re in, or they may not always be in a war zone.
They still be deployed. But, um, you know, there’s other things that it’s like, you’re not home. You can’t just, you know, get in your car and drive to, you know, something that has that comfort of
Gina Elise: Yeah. Exactly.
Scott DeLuzio: you’re, you’re stuck on a base somewhere and you don’t have those, those. The comfort of home, basically.
So
Gina Elise: And also I think for them to know that, again, that people are thinking of them, like that can make a difference.
Scott DeLuzio: for sure. Yeah. Um, and I, and I, again, going back to when I was deployed, there were people in my unit that I served with. They didn’t, didn’t get a single care package for the longest time. And. I was like, that’s, that kind of sucks. And you know, like I had, you know, very supportive family. I was, I was getting care packages all the time.
And I told my wife, I was like, there’s some guys here. They haven’t gotten anything. And so one time she sent me this box. [00:49:00] I, it was so heavy. Um, I don’t know. I don’t know. Like the, the people in the post office were probably cursing her because it was just so, so heavy. And she packed it with so many like snacks and other just things that, um, it was like, Hey, like nobody’s going to.
Get out of here without, uh, getting something.
Gina Elise: Yeah, that’s really
Scott DeLuzio: you know, so it was one of those things where it’s just like, Hey, everybody takes something and everybody gets something. Right. Um, but, but it’s again, someone thinking of you and, and that’s exactly what, what it is that you guys are doing. And I think it’s wonderful that, that you’re, you’re doing that.
So, um, You know, uh, you know, I, I think, um, for the listeners who are out there and maybe hearing about the, the great work that you’re doing, you know, I’m sure a lot of people have probably heard about, um, you know, the Pin-Ups for Vets at some point or another, maybe didn’t know specifics of, you know, exactly what it is that you guys do.
Hopefully this episode helps shed some light on what it is that you guys do, but, um, can you [00:50:00] share a little bit more about where they can go to provide support or if they’re a female veteran themselves? That maybe wants to get involved with, with, with that. Like, um, you know, what’s the process and how does all that, that work?
Gina Elise: Yes, so first, um, to support the organization, you can go to pinups4vets. com, that’s the website, and you can make a donation on our donate link, or you can buy something from our fundraiser store. As far as the calendars, you can get a calendar for yourself, you can get one for a deployed service member that we will ship.
In a care package, you can get one for a hospitalized veteran that we will deliver on our hospital visits. So there’s a number of ways to kind of support and we have lots of fun items in the store. We have everything from like flasks, to tin signs, to shirts, challenge coins, blankets, really cool stuff. Um, you know, if you’re thinking about doing some holiday shopping, it’s gifts that give back.
Um, as far as getting involved with us, As a female veteran, we usually [00:51:00] post a casting call in the spring, uh, for the next calendar. So we will ask people to submit pictures, to submit a little bit about their service, and why do they want to be a part of the calendar and our non profit organization. We usually get hundreds of applications.
It’s very hard to narrow it down to, you know, we only have, there’s only 13 or 12 months in the calendar. We have 13 ladies this year because we doubled up on one of the months and we have two ladies in the month of August, two coasties. Um, but, uh, yeah, that’s, that’s kind of the way that, you know, ladies get in the calendar.
As far as just volunteering with us, anyone can message us, you know, through the website if they want to volunteer on our visits. Yes. For
Scott DeLuzio: Um, and I’ll put a link to the website in the show notes. And, uh, that way folks who want to make a donation, purchase a calendar or any of the other products that you mentioned, I took a [00:52:00] peek through your, your store on your website, and there’s, there’s quite a few products like you mentioned, um, which is, which is pretty cool.
And, uh, you know, so if anyone wants to buy any of those or don’t make a donation, um, you know, I’ll, I’ll have the link there and, um, you know, stay tuned for the, uh, the casting call in the spring. Um, obviously
Gina Elise: 20th annual
Scott DeLuzio: for the 20th. So this is a big one.
Gina Elise: This is our big anniversary calendar.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. So this one, this one’s gonna be special. I’m sure.
I, I mean, I, I, I don’t know the, the, the plans or anything that might be
Gina Elise: Neither do I, Scott.
Scott DeLuzio: Okay. So, so I’m, so I’m, I’m, I’m putting it out there. It’s going to be special. It’s going to be big. So, uh, so that’s going to be on you now. Now you’ve got to make it happen. No pressure.
Gina Elise: No, no, no pressure. It’ll be good. I’m excited for
Scott DeLuzio: yeah, no, it is exciting. And, and, um, you know, obviously when you do anything for that much time, you know, 20 years of, of putting these calendars [00:53:00] out and, and helping, uh, you know, with the, the equipment donations and, and supporting the, the morale, uh, and I’m All the things that you guys do, um, 20 years is, um, you know, a significant amount of dedication.
It’s, it’s not the one year that you thought it would be, maybe two, you know, if you, if you twist my arm, I could do two, you know, that’s, it’s a significant amount of dedication. And so, um, and it’s, it’s more than just, uh, You know, taking a few pictures and slapping a calendar together and, you know, uh, you know, doing it like that.
It’s, it’s, it’s way more than that. Um, because it’s like a year long thing where, where you’re, you’re going and you’re making the, uh, the visits to the hospitals and you’re, you’re, uh, donating the equipment and you’re, you’re fundraising and doing all these types of things. And so it’s, it’s a lot of work that goes into it.
Um, it’s not a, uh, You know, okay, well, we made the calendar for this year, so we’re done. And now we’ll do nothing until next year. Like there’s a lot of work behind the scenes. I’m sure.
Gina Elise: I mean, even just to do the calendars, months and months and months of production. It’s like [00:54:00] making a movie every year.
Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. Yeah. Because, uh, you know, and you shared with me some of the photos from the calendar, uh, when, when we met and, um, You know, there’s different scenes for each one, different, different people in each calendar, or sorry, in each, yeah, different cars and,
Gina Elise: Yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: you know, different, you know, vintage cars and, you know, other, other things like that.
And it’s really cool and it’s, and it’s really well done, um, but yeah, I’m, I’m sure that that requires a lot of planning. It’s not like you just found a car on the side of the road and you’re like, Hey, let’s take a picture here. It’s, it’s.
Gina Elise: logistics. It’s all, yeah, I mean, it’s all just production. It really is like, you know, planning like an art exhibit or a movie. I mean, it’s huge from the casting to location scouting to just planning all the photo shoots and then editing. Even after the photo shoots, editing, then the, then the actual graphic design of the entire calendar of every single page on the calendar.
And you know, the calendar is special. We like to have a lot of like the [00:55:00] military holiday, like the birthdays of all the branches and just like special events like in military history. So it’s a pretty unique calendar in that sense. Um, so yeah, just to make the calendar is a gigantic process every year.
Scott DeLuzio: Well, I, you know, it, it, it drives me nuts sometimes when I, when I look at a calendar and they have these weird off the wall holidays, like National Cake Day or
Gina Elise: Yeah, yeah.
Scott DeLuzio: something stupid like that. Right. Um, and it’s, and it’s like, you’re looking through it and it’s like, okay, where’s Memorial Day in this calendar?
Where’s, you know, Veterans Day? Where’s, you know, the Army birthday or, you know, Marine Corps birthday, you know, all those, uh, different, uh, you know, holidays and, and none of those show up, but, but we know when national hotdog day is and whatever, like, I don’t care how much you like hotdogs. It’s like, I don’t really care about that personally.
I don’t know. That’s just, that’s just me. But, um, you know, I, uh, I would much rather see the, the other holidays that are, that are in there. So I appreciate the effort that goes into, [00:56:00] uh, putting those calendars together. Um, uh, so. I guess, you know, kind of to wrap up here, I want to thank you for taking the time first off to share what you do, uh, the work that you’re doing to, uh, help our, our veterans, uh, through Pin-Ups for Vets, um, uh, you know, the dedication, it’s kind of a, a unique thing that you’re doing, uh, you know, I don’t, I don’t know that anyone else is doing anything similar to this, but, um, you know, it’s kind of a unique thing and it’s, it’s, um, You know, I think kind of inspiring too, because, um, you know, you can take one person like you back, you know, almost 20 years ago now, um, who just had this idea and you ran with it and now, you know, thousands of lives have been, uh, benefit from, from the work that you you’ve been doing.
Um, you know, like anyone can. Have an idea and as crazy as it may seem at the time, they can take it and run with it and, and see where it takes them. And, and who knows 20 years from now, we may have, we have a whole nother group of people who are doing something different that [00:57:00] that is, is benefiting people in a, in a different way.
And I think that’s, you know, kind of an inspiring thing there. So I want to thank you for not only taking the time to come on the show, but, um, for all the work that you’ve been doing and will continue to do. Cause I don’t, I don’t think this is, this is over anytime soon. For you, it seems like your dedication is, is, uh, you know, in it for the long haul.
So, um, you know, so I, I, I do encourage the listeners though, to, uh, go to the website, pinupsforvets. com. I’ll have that in the show notes, um, and, uh, get involved, support, uh, you know, whether it’s through a donation or, you know, if you, um, you know, are so inclined to, uh, join the ranks of the ambassadors, uh, you know, to, to do that as well.
So, uh, thank you again, Gina, I really do appreciate you taking the time to come on.
Gina Elise: my pleasure. Thank you.