Non-profit helping veterans follow their passions

TAMPA, Fla. - After a physically taxing eight month deployment in Afghanistan, Marine veteran Brittany Brogdon underwent two knee surgeries and is now a small business owner.

Brogdon was deployed in January 2013 and returned in July of that year.

"We were running six plus miles with our boots, with our flacks on, which are our weighted vests and a rubber weapon just to make sure that we knew how to move around, like a combat setting," Brogdon said."

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Those running drills happened at least four times per week, alongside other physical training and work.

Brogdon needed steroid injections and rounds of physical therapy for a couple of years.

"I did not want to have surgery, and I just didn't want to deal with too many medical issues, but by the end of it, I had to have surgery, there was no way around it," Brogdon said.

After two knee surgeries, Brogdon was inspired to start her own business in what she truly loved; hair care.

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She got licenses to be a cosmetologist, an esthetician, and a barber and wanted to open her own salon.

Brogdon connected with Semper Fi and America's Fund, a non-profit organization that helps veterans.

"They had me send them my resume, what everything looked like, just an idea of what the idea was, and they took it from there," Brogdon said. "They ended up cutting the checks so I could get in here and that’s amazing because you know things are expensive in this world, so to have that type of financial help, it was honestly a blessing, I could not be more appreciative of it."