A PUBLIC CEO STATEMENT BY KIRK CARLSON

“WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW”

Founder & CEO — Covenant of Courage

Executive Director — JLBC Cadet Corps

Creator — Warrior Activated & Group 7 Network

Lead Advocate — Reasonable Ranks

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A Movement Built From Courage

When Covenant of Courage began, it wasn’t just an idea — it was a promise.

A covenant that every veteran, every young person, every family in crisis, and every person who felt forgotten would have a place to rise again.

Today, we stand at a defining moment in that mission.

We are no longer a concept or a hopeful plan.

We are a movement — growing, strengthening, and transforming lives across the Inland Empire and beyond.

This is where we are right now.

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1. Veterans Are Rising Again

Our veteran empowerment work has expanded faster than any of us imagined.

• Monthly workshops at the Janet Goeske Foundation

• New partnerships with senior wellness programs

• Fitness, gardening, resilience, and mental health sessions

• A safe, supportive place for veterans to reconnect and heal

• Community spaces where veterans lead again — not as patients, but as mentors

Veterans are not broken.

They are underutilized leaders.

And Covenant of Courage is proving that when veterans rise, communities rise with them.

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2. The Next Generation Is Stepping Into Leadership

Through the JLBC Cadet Corps and Norco College we are building something rare:

A pipeline of young leaders who are disciplined, confident, physically capable, academically strong, and trained in emergency preparedness.

These youth are not just learning skills —

they are learning identity, purpose, and responsibility.

We are seeing teens who once lacked direction now learning:

• ICS structure

• CERT fundamentals

• Tactical fitness

• Community service

• Leadership and personal accountability

• College and career readiness

They are becoming the leaders their communities will one day depend on.

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3. Warrior Activated Is Becoming a Regional Fitness Movement

Fitness is not just exercise — it is discipline, resilience, and a return to self-respect.

Warrior Activated began as a training idea and is now evolving into a multi-location tactical fitness program, where veterans, youth, and community members train side-by-side.

In the coming months:

• Gym partnerships will be activated

• The 30-Day Warrior Challenge will go public

• Tactical fitness events will launch across Riverside & Corona

• Community-sponsored fitness programs will open to all ages

We train the ready.

We lead the response.

We build the storm.

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4. Reasonable Ranks Is Growing Into a National Advocacy Voice

When the Mayor of Corona publicly supported our reform efforts, it marked a turning point.

We are now building:

• A Congressional Testimony Packet

• A national reform coalition

• A legislative white paper

• Partnerships with civic leaders, veteran organizations, and community advocates

Reasonable Ranks is no longer a petition.

It is a policy movement committed to ensuring that injured, disabled, and marginalized service members are treated with dignity, transparency, and opportunity.

This is only the beginning.

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5. Group 7 & RRTV Are Building the Media Engine Behind the Movement

Stories change people.

People change systems.

Through Group 7 and Reasonable Ranks TV, we are creating:

• Veteran profiles

• Cadet features

• Documentary-style storytelling

• Motivational content

• Viral challenges

• Behind-the-scenes narratives

• Fitness motivation

• Petition awareness videos

This media engine is how our mission becomes a movement and a movement becomes culture.

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6. We Are Building the Infrastructure for Long-Term Impact

Behind the scenes, we have been building the systems required for real, scalable growth:

• Grant writing pipeline

• Corporate sponsorship decks

• Volunteer onboarding structure

• Legal and compliance systems

• 501(c)(4) readiness for advocacy

• Training manuals and operational handbooks

• Multi-year strategic plan for 2026–2027

This is no longer a startup nonprofit —

this is a developing institution.

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7. We Are Planting Seeds That Will Outlive Us

This work is not just about now.

It’s about:

• the veteran who finds purpose again

• the teenager who discovers leadership

• the senior who rediscovers community

• the family who becomes prepared for crisis

• the community that becomes safer because of our programs

• the members of Congress who will one day vote because we showed up

• the legacy we leave behind

Covenant of Courage is not building a brand.

We are building a generation.

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Where We Are Going Next

As we move toward 2026, we are preparing:

• Expansion of JLBC and youth leadership programs

• Multi-location tactical fitness hubs

• A Veterans Empowerment Center model

• Regional emergency preparedness initiatives

• A national policy reform effort

• A full RRTV broadcast schedule

• Annual community events and fitness challenges

• State and federal grant applications

• Long-term partnerships with businesses, cities, and schools

This is our trajectory.

This is our momentum.

This is our purpose.

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A Final Word From Your CEO

Everything we are building comes down to one truth:

Courage is a covenant — a promise we make to rise, rebuild, and help others do the same.

Where we are right now is powerful.

Where we are going is historic.

And every person who joins us becomes part of a movement larger than themselves.

We are Covenant of Courage.

We rise together.

We lead together.

We endure the storm together.

And together — we become the storm.

— Kirk B. Carlson

Founder & CEO, Covenant of Courage

Executive Director, JLBC Cadet Corps

Creator, Warrior Activated™

Lead Advocate, Reasonable Ranks

Producer, Group 7 Network / RRTV