Wounded Warrior Project

Jake Norotsky grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania, the son of a Vietnam veteran
and pastor. He’d always been interested in music, but when his father committed
suicide while he was in tenth grade, Jake was pulled to follow a different path. “My dad
had a legacy, as we called it, and I always felt like I needed to continue that in some
way, to continue serving others,” says Jake. “It seemed like going into the military was
the best way to do that.”
In the Army, during his second deployment to Iraq in 2007, Jake was the crew chief on
a Blackhawk helicopter, flying almost a thousand hours during that tour and seeing
combat day after day. During one mission, his aircraft was hit 36 times. “It was just a
crazy night,” says Jake. “When it was over, we were out of ammo, fuel, and time.”
When Jake returned home, he knew things weren’t right. The fast-paced environment
and constant strain of helicopter flight had taken their toll on his body — and the things
he saw had taken a toll on his mind. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and being
pushed out of the military brought Jake to his breaking point and led him into the
valley of suicidal ideation. Thankfully, Jake started to turn his life around after his wife
signed him up for a five-day Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) Project Odyssey®. “The
realization that I’m not alone, and I’m not broken; it was absolutely amazing,” says Jake.
It’s a realization Jake wishes more people could experience, as he’s lost far too many
friends to suicide. “There’s a saying I have up on the wall. It says, ‘When the demons
come to you in the night, brother, call me, and we’ll fight them together.’ That’s what
Wounded Warrior Project is.”
Today, Jake once again serves on the front line, but instead of using bullets, he’s using
his powerful story to connect with and challenge audiences around the nation. “My dad
led me to a life of service all those years ago” says Jake, “and I’m finally exactly where I
need to be.”
When not traveling, Jake can be found on the football field of a small military academy
in Alabama, coaching and mentoring high school athletes. After his first year with a
team that hadn’t won a playoff game in 60 years, Jake and his fellow coaches took the
focus away from the playbook, and instead set a goal of building a family of accountable
young men. In 2020, they won the division 2 national high school championship in
eight-man football, and Jake would go on to coach seven defensive shutouts in three
years. When asked what success looks like, Jake just points to his boys and says:
“Just win your today.”