Clay Hunt
Travis Manion Memorial Fellow
Clay Hunt has been awarded a Mission Continues Fellowship to assist in the development of Team Rubicon, an immediate response element to international disaster areas. He will be working alongside Jacob Wood in building a firm foundation for the organization. He is hoping to eventually gain full time employment from Team Rubicon.
Clay enlisted in the USMC Infantry in May of 2005, at the age of 23. While deployed in Iraq in 2007, Clay was shot through his wrist by enemy sniper fire. He returned to Afghanistan in 2008 after earning his 0317 Scout/Sniper MOS following his rehabilitation, where he served as a Radio Operator/Observer for his sniper team. After returning from his Afghanistan deployment, Clay decided to separate from the Corps, and began planning to enroll at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
Now residing in West Los Angeles, Clay is a full-time student at LMU. In addition to being a student, Clay has had the opportunity to become involved with Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America as a spokesperson and is currently featured in one of IAVA's PSA's in partnership with the AdCouncil. Clay, along with Jacob Wood, were given the chance to join IAVA this February for their annual "Storm the Hill" campaign, where they and other veterans met for a week with members of Congress to discuss and present IAVA's Legislative Agenda for 2010, which addresses important Veteran's issues, specifically much needed reform in the VA claims process.
Clay is also an active participant with Ride2Recovery, an organization that helps rehabilitate injured Veteran's through cycling and group interaction with other veterans. Clay has completed challenge rides from San Francisco to Los Angeles, CA, as well as Jacksonville to Tampa Bay, FL with Ride2Recovery, and will be riding this summer from Cheyenne, WY to Fort Collins, CO with over 150 other riders. Clay suffers from PTSD due to his service in Iraq and Afghanistan, and has benefited greatly from his involvement with the group.
In January of this year, Clay joined Jacob and other former service members as a member of Team Rubicon. They have deployed to both Haiti and Chile this spring in response to the earthquakes there, and are currently working to continue to develop Team Rubicon as an organization and as a model for other NGO's to adopt in disaster response situations.
Read Clay's thoughts on his Fellowship and service
Our Mission:
To build an America where every returning veteran can serve again as a citizen leader, and where together we honor the fallen by living their values through service.
