Bright Wealth Management supports charity that empowers ‘recalibrated’ veterans

PHOENIX — KTAR’s community spotlight this month celebrates a financial services company whose donations support the Travis Mills Foundation.

Bright Wealth Management backs the charity, which works to improve the lives of veterans.

Its titular founder started the charity to help people overcome by physical and emotional obstacles similar to what he went through after serving time in Afghanistan.

“I got blown up and had to reevaluate what I was gonna do,” Mills told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News on Tuesday.

After surviving a quadruple amputation, he had to find a new way to help others.

“Quite frankly, I lost my chance to serve my country,” Mills said. “I thought, ‘How can I still keep going forward? What can I do to be active in life again?'”

He and his wife decided to start the nonprofit to help families enduring similar struggles.

“My family went through something tragic,” Mills said. “But we were able to bounce back and able to keep going forward in life.”

How Travis Mills Foundation helps families

The foundation helps post-9/11 veterans and their families through various empowerment programs at a retreat in the Belgrade Lakes region of Maine. Visiting families milies get an expense- and barrier-free experience in which they can enjoy various activities.

“We show them that life is possible after injury,” Mills said.

The Travis Mills Foundation’s retreat has various disability-friendly features. For instance, it can help people in wheelchairs climb ropes or people without arms practice archery.

“We show these families that they’re not different. They’re recalibrated,” Mills said. “We’ve been running for 10 yeas now.”

How Bright Wealth Management helps the charity

Mills said he’s deeply grateful to Bright Wealth Management for its financial support.

It all started when Mills met the owner of Mortach Financial, a retirement investment company, while working as a keynote speaker in a conference in Jamaica.

“He goes, ‘I’m gonna give a $500,000 donation, but we have to match it,” Mills said.

Dave Mortach promised to match each donation to the charity until it reached $500,000. This $1 million challenge takes place every year.

“He has Matt Dages down in Arizona who works under him and helped him start his company, which is Bright Wealth,” Mills said. “I can’t thank them enough.”

With this financial support, the Travis Mills Foundation can serve eight families per week for 42 weeks out of the year. The charity bought new properties and is expanding its offerings to help veterans and first responders grapple with post-traumatic stress disorder.

“We’re able to get these families to understand that ‘Hey, life’s gonna throw you a curveball every now and then, but it’s okay,” Mills said. “We can get through it and we can push past and we’re going to do it together.”

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