WE LOOKED FOR THIS COMMUNITY. WE COULDN’T FIND IT. SO WE BUILT IT.
Founded by two veterans who came home and ran into the same wall most veterans hit: the community they’d built in the military didn’t exist on the outside.
Our Mission
We create spaces and experiences where veterans, military families, and community supporters can connect, stay active, and belong — bridging the gap between military and civilian life through recreation, fitness, outdoor programming, and service.
Our Vision
A national network of Esprit de Corps Campuses where any veteran, military family member, or community supporter can walk in and immediately feel the sense of shared purpose and belonging that service creates — and civilian life too often takes away.
Where service continues.
Our Story
WHY WE EXIST
Esprit de Corps Foundation was founded in January 2025 by Damian Garcia and Rogelio Villa — two veterans who came home and ran into the same wall most veterans hit: the community they’d built in the military didn’t exist on the outside.
Damian served in the US Army, including active duty at Fort Drum, and now continues to serve in the Illinois National Guard. Rogelio is a US Marine veteran. Between them, they’ve lived both sides of the transition — the camaraderie of service and the silence that follows it.
What they wanted was simple: a place with the energy of a YMCA and the soul of a USO. Somewhere active, welcoming, and always open — where veterans can be themselves, military families feel seen, and civilians who care about this community can show up and belong.
Not a program. Not a support group. A home.
“We didn’t build this because we thought it would be nice. We built it because we needed it. And if we needed it, we know damn well other people do too.”
WHO WE’RE BUILDING FOR
Veterans. Active duty. Guard and Reserve. Military families. Dependents. Families of the fallen. And civilians who believe the military-civilian divide is a problem worth solving.
You don’t have to have served to belong here. You just have to show up.
Honesty
WHERE WE ARE
We launched in January 2025. We’re honest about where we are: a young organization with a big vision, real partnerships, and a growing community of people who get it.
In our first year we’ve partnered with Travis Manion Foundation, Student Veterans of America, and the American Legion. We’ve hosted events, gotten people on the water, and started building the kind of community we set out to create.
We’re just getting started — and there’s still room to be part of it from the beginning.
THIS COMMUNITY NEEDS YOU.
We’re not waiting until everything is perfect. We’re building this in real time — and there’s still room to be part of it from the beginning.
Our Partners
Community
