Baseline: Veteran Family Dynamics
The trail changes after service. Transitioning from the high-stakes structure of military life back into the rhythm of family dynamics isn't a failure of connection—it is a systemic challenge. At Baseline: Veteran Family Dynamics, we do not treat, diagnose, or pathologize. Instead, we provide high-performing veteran families with the physical challenges, outdoor skills, and structured communication tools required to navigate civilian terrain as a cohesive unit.
The Mission Data
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The Transition Gap: Every year, 88,000 newly separated veteran families face intense friction and role shifts due to difficult civilian re-entry challenges.
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The Internal Impact: Parental stress trickles down directly, serving as the primary driver behind a child’s behavioral and emotional struggles.
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The Community Solution: Isolation accelerates family breakdown, but establishing a local peer network effectively anchors and protects the household.
Our Core Mission (What & How)
To combat veteran isolation by equipping families with sustainable health, wellness, and outdoor frameworks designed to overcome backcountry challenges and forge lasting community ties.
Our Core Vision (Why)
To cultivate a nationwide network of resilient veteran families and peer structures who thrive together, ensuring no service member, spouse, or child navigates the civilian terrain alone.
Our Story
Baseline was founded by two veterans and outdoor educators who noticed a critical gap in the community: a distinct lack of long-term, reinforcing programming designed to support not just veterans, but their spouses and children after service. Born from that realization, Baseline uses the same technical challenges that build elite military units—navigating tough terrain, managing risk, and relying on the person next to you—to fortify families. Operating on a 1,000-acre property lease near Lake George, Colorado, we use world-class outdoor environments to help families step away from everyday distractions, reconnect, and reset their baseline.
The Team Behind the Mission
Our programs are built and led by individuals who understand the unique dynamics of service, transition, and family life.
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Andrew Hartman: A U.S. Army veteran and professional outdoor educator (NOLS Wilderness First Responder and PCIA Climbing Instructor), Andrew combines tactical experience with technical outdoor expertise to design safe, impactful, and transformative wilderness experiences.
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Jason Allred: An Air Force veteran and dedicated health and wellness professional, Jason brings a deep understanding of holistic well-being to the team. Currently pursuing his Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) credential, he bridges the gap between physical health and mental resilience, ensuring families have the tools to thrive long after the cohort ends.
Together, we are dedicated to helping veteran families reconnect, rebuild foundational bonds, and face life’s challenges as a cohesive unit.
Organizational Core Values
Our five core values translate the elite, tactical mindset of military service into actionable, health-focused pillars.
Mutual Reliance
(Cover & Move)
Operational Readiness
(Biological & Mental Vitality)
Vulnerability Under Belay
(Safe Friction)
We reject the model of the veteran as an isolated "patient". By training solo veterans, spouses, partners, and youth side-by-side under calculated physical pressure, we forge an unbreakable team as our operational baseline.
True readiness is holistic; you cannot have mental resilience if your body is in a state of biological alarm. We utilize certified Nutrition Coaches and Personal Trainers to address systemic inflammation.
We utilize the calculated risk of technical wilderness recreation—such as top-rope climbing—to serve as a direct proxy for emotional trust. The belay serves as a Baseline Anchor for the family unit, where dropping the guard is a sign of elite operational strength.
Active Fellowship
(The Permanent Safety Net)
Generational Leadership
(Leaving a Legacy Trail)
Isolation is the silent enemy. We build a permanent, national network of regional chapters—our Baseline Safety Net—where veterans and families sweat together, camp together, and show up for one another.
By engaging spouses as equal partners and empowering youth with leadership roles, we inspire a legacy of active citizenship and community enrichment.