AUSTIN, Texas — Travis Gardner and Tucker Burns proudly served their country.
Gardner was in the U.S. Air Force for six years, while Burns enlisted in the U.S. Army and stayed for four years.
The two men met at Corps of Cadets at Texas A&M before serving and formed a friendship. Their paths crossed once again in Austin, where the two both felt stagnant in their day jobs.
"We [were] both in sales roles, feeling a little bit unfulfilled with what we were doing," Burns said.
That feeling of staleness prompted the duo to quit their day jobs and start The Charge Apparel, a business venture designed to serve the veteran community.
The Charge Apparel was born with a goal that 12% of its total sales would go toward three nonprofit organizations that offer mental health initiatives for veterans.
"We started this company and not [to] get super rich not to anything like that. We really just wanted to be a purpose-driven brand that actually impacted other people," Gardner said.
The organizations the two partnered up with are the Mighty Oaks Foundation, Camp Hope [PTSD Foundation of America] and the Colorado Wind River Ranch.
Gardner detailed his own struggles with mental health. During his time conducting criminal investigations, he was forced to witness "a lot of the dark sides of the military."
"We responded to all the suicides that were on base. So a lot of the really nasty things that go on within the military," Gardner said. "I actually kind of self-medicated in some ways that were not healthy and finally started to pursue mental health on my own."
For Burns, his experience was also a driving force.
"My first few months when I was in, I actually lost two buddies to suicide," Burns said.
The stigma on mental health is common amongst veterans, according to Burns and Gardner, and one they hope to combat with the help of the community.
"It takes several different pieces from multiple different branches to be able to execute one mission successfully, and that's the same thing here, " Gardner said.
According to the 2023 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report released this week by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, in 2021, more than 6,000 veterans died by suicide – a slight increase from the year prior.
The report also revealed that suicide was the 13th leading cause of death among veterans in 2021, and that the number was found to be much higher among those who were in the of 18 to 34 age bracket.
It's a reality Burns stated not many people who join the military are prepped for. He and Gardner only hope that their small contribution is enough to allow fellow veterans to seek help if they need it.
"Seeking help is not a sign of weakness. It's actually a sign of strength, " Gardner said. "The only thing that really matters is that you're improving and that you're going to be improving the people's lives around you."