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2025 WINNER

Richard Casper

CreatiVets

CreatiVets empowers wounded veterans to heal through the arts and music.

Richard Casper, Co-Founder & Executive Director of CreatiVets, is a Marine Corps Veteran, Purple Heart recipient, artist, entrepreneur, and songwriter.

During his Iraq tour (2006–2007), Richard survived four IED blasts, sustaining a traumatic brain injury and witnessing the loss of a close friend, leading to post-traumatic stress.

Turning to art and songwriting for healing, he graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where the vision for CreatiVets took shape, a non-profit dedicated to helping wounded veterans with post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries heal through art and music.

Named a CNN Hero in 2022 and one of TIME magazine’s Next Generation Leaders in 2017, Richard is featured in TIME’s documentary Evidence of Things Unseen, in which President George W. Bush recognized his life-changing work with veterans. He is also an alumnus of the Bush Institute’s Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program.

Richard lives in Nashville, TN, with his wife Ashley and their children, Barrett and Quinn.

IMPACT IN ACTION: