Travis Manion — Free Veteran Mentor Network & Gold Star Support
The Travis Manion Foundation (TMF) is a national veteran community organization founded in memory of Marine Lt. Travis Manion, who was killed in Iraq in 2007. TMF empowers veterans, service members, and the families of fallen heroes — its tagline, drawn from Travis Manion’s own words, is If Not Me, Then Who. The Foundation’s peer programs include the Veteran Mentor Network, character development, transition support, and a national community of veterans and family members supporting one another.
What to Expect
TMF’s Veteran Mentor Network pairs transitioning service members with veteran mentors who have already navigated the move to civilian life. Mentor relationships are structured for ongoing peer support across the months and years of transition, covering employment, education, mental health, family dynamics, and identity. The Foundation also runs Character Does Matter — a peer-led leadership and storytelling program where veterans share their stories with youth and community audiences — and operates regional offices across the country where local veterans and Gold Star family members gather for community events, service projects, and peer connection. The TMF Spartan Leadership Network supports veteran and Gold Star leaders in ongoing peer development.
Who This Group Is For
TMF serves veterans of all eras and branches, active-duty service members preparing to transition, and Gold Star families (immediate family members of fallen service members). Veteran mentors are typically post-9/11 veterans with significant transition experience; mentees are often newer veterans or active-duty members within 18 months of separation. Gold Star family programming serves spouses, children, parents, and siblings of fallen service members and is delivered with care for the unique grief and identity work that loss carries.
Why Peer Support Works
Transition out of military service is one of the highest-risk periods for veteran mental health, identity loss, and disconnection. Being paired with a veteran mentor who has already moved through that period — and who is committed to staying available across the long arc of transition — gives transitioning veterans a kind of consistent peer relationship that’s rare to find any other way. TMF’s combination of mentor relationships, regional community gatherings, and character-focused leadership programs creates multiple touch points for the work.
How to Join
TMF programs are free. Visit travismanion.org to find a regional office, request a mentor through the Veteran Mentor Network, apply to become a mentor, or learn about the Spartan Leadership Network. TMF has regional offices in Pennsylvania, Texas, California, Florida, North Carolina, Washington DC, and other locations across the country.