A Safe Space for Scrap Heap

Scrap Heap started a conversation between McClatchy and the VA’s Heather Seymour, national director of Whole Health community partnerships and communications. “Things really accelerated when an MFA cohort that I was supervising did an outreach program and we identified the military community as their community partner,” McClatchy says. “We did Shakespeare workshops with a group of veterans and active duty personnel, and another with family members and VA counselors. Heather was really involved. We always check in about how the workshops are going and what we can maybe do more effectively.”

McClatchy adds that his work with the VA has strengthened Scrap Heap as a whole. “I learn more nuance and detail as I meet with new individuals, or interact with the same individuals more. And I think that it makes me remember more vividly the responsibility and the privilege of doing this.”

That work has expanded with the Wex presentation of Scrap Heap, aided by an existing relationship between McCambridge and Goss.

“Kevin had a vision for this production and workshop, so we wanted to help make connections to folks in the community who might be supportive in a very targeted way,” says Tracie McCambridge. “For instance, Armond at the VA and I had been working together on Vets at the Wex this past winter, so we connected Kevin to resources like Armond and others, while also recognizing that this isn’t his first rodeo. Kevin has been working with Heather Seymour over the years.

“We just tried to figure out the best way to support through our joint networks,” she adds. “But also, we considered how as an institution, we can prepare the audience. One goal was to support the artists—Kevin is our guest as an artist in residence. But from my experience working with military veterans over the years, I wanted to make sure that by partnering with Kevin and the Performing Arts department, we could create the most responsible and sensitive experience possible for engaging with the performances and the workshops. This is an audience that’s very tough, but they've been through some things.”

Together, the event partners thought through details such as how some audience members might respond to flashing lights or potentially startling sounds, and how the action onstage might create triggers. This resulted in content warnings added to the event’s web page, but also the designation of a space adjacent to but separate from the Performance Space for anyone who feels uncomfortable over the course of the play.

Says McCambridge, “If they need to step away for a moment because they are finding themselves triggered or a little bit on edge, how do we articulate to them that you can walk away for a moment and take a breather and no one's going to judge you? You’re not going to be seen as a rude guest or anything like that. 

"The Wex is committed to equity and diversity and access," she notes. "We stand with our communities and our communities have experienced a lot, and they have lots of different needs and requirements. And many times those needs are invisible.”

Goss, who also maintains a personal wellness practice under the name Armond WakeUp, was a medical logistics expert in the US Army, stationed in Japan and Washington State, who at one point was part of the supply chain for soldiers in Afghanistan.

Given his own wellness practice, “It just made sense to also do that [for the VA],” Goss says. “It’s an opportunity to help veterans accomplish their holistic goals, be that physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. That could be anything from, ‘I've been cooped up in my house because of quarantine for three years and I need some friends,' to, ‘I want to get back in the gym,' or ‘While I was cooped up, my house got cluttered, and I need to clean it out.'”

“Our goal in Scrap Heap is to essentially just be a a presence, because art is one of the modalities that we use to support the veterans through Whole Health,” Goss explains. “For example, drawing allows you to clear your mind and gives you some focus, and from that you're able to tackle some of the other issues that you may have in your body.

“What the VA is doing is making sure that it's going above and beyond to come to the veterans," he says. "We are integrating ourselves in the community more. And then I'm just offering my experience personally and all my years as a veteran. So if you're not enrolled with the VA, we will have some people from enrollment at the performance. If you are not signed up with Whole Health, we will get you signed up and have a coach contact you.”

Speaking to the benefit of Scrap Heap beyond the resources surrounding the show, Goss says, “I think it's going to allow the veterans to see their experience from an artistic standpoint. I think that's important because sometimes the vets can really get into their experience, so they don't see it as this creative endeavor. They see it as this really hard thing that they experienced. There’s a lot of trauma and a lot of the care that they're receiving has to do with their experiences while they were served.

“I think also, it's going to give them the opportunity to be seen, and that's the biggest thing that veterans gripe about," Goss says. "Why don't you see me? Do I not exist to you? I served my country, so you should see me and acknowledge that I exist as a human being, and acknowledge my contribution to the United States of America. When a veteran is able to see their experience from a different perspective, I think it opens up a door for healing, for healthy conversations, for resolve. I think this will be a catalyst for a lot of good work that they'll be able to experience. That's why the VA is there to help, because they can't do that on their own.”

While care for the vets community is central to this performance, the experiences and lessons it contains can benefit the broader community, according to McClatchy and Goss.

Goss says, “Many of us, if we're not ourselves veterans, we have relatives, we have grandfathers and uncles and aunts. There's some connection somewhere in our lineage. Like, ‘I don't work for the VA, but my grandfather was a World War II vet,' so that's important to acknowledge.”

“It's obviously gratifying that veterans have identified with it and found usefulness in it,” McClatchy says. “But when the audience is mixed, it's really good, too, because then there's a different different kind of exchange. People who are in the civilian population may recoil from some of the truths. That's an interesting entry point for conversation.”