Clinton’s Groves named 2026 Military Friendly® Veteran of the Year

By Dan Fazio

When Clintonian Ryan Groves learned he had been named the Military Friendly® Veteran of the Year, his first reaction was disbelief.

“There are a lot of Veterans doing incredible things across the country, so to have my name selected was pretty humbling,” he says.

Then came a second thought: How did I get here?

The answer, Groves says, has little to do with him alone.

Throughout his life, mentors have seen potential in him before he saw it in himself. They challenged him, opened doors and trusted him with responsibilities he wasn’t sure he was ready to handle. Now, as a retired U.S. Army chief warrant officer 3, combat-wounded Veteran and federal employee, Groves is trying to do the same for others.

“This recognition may have my name on it, but it really represents years of people investing in me,” Groves says.

That philosophy is at the heart of how Groves approaches his second chapter, one in which the uniform is gone, but the mission of serving others remains.

THREE YEARS BECOMES 22

Groves joined the Army for what he thought would be a short stop on the way to something else: working as a park ranger.

He enlisted in the National Guard while in high school, then joined the active-duty Army after a state parks interviewer suggested he needed more experience before he could land the job he wanted. His plan was simple: serve for three years, gain experience and earn money for college.

Three years became more than two decades.

During his Army career, Groves served in artillery and operations, deployed, led soldiers and ultimately became a warrant officer. Along the way, he learned lessons that went far beyond military tactics.

“The Army taught me discipline and accountability, but the biggest lessons were about people,” he says.

Many mentors helped shape that philosophy. Sgt. 1st Class Thurman Body pulled Groves off the gun line and made him his tactical driver, giving him a broader view of artillery operations. Chief Warrant Officer 2 Richard Emendorfer later encouraged him to apply to become a warrant officer– a career path Groves had never considered.

“When I came into the National Park Service, Carrie Mardorf did something very similar,” he said. “She pushed me toward leadership opportunities that I thought were probably still years away. She trusted me with responsibilities before I was completely convinced I was ready for them.”

Those experiences taught him the value of looking at problems from different perspectives and recognizing potential in others.

“I joined for three years and college money,” Groves says. “I left more than two decades later with an education I could never have received in a classroom.”

LEARNING TO BECOME SOMEONE NEW

Groves was wounded in combat and received the Purple Heart. The physical injuries, he says, were not the hardest part.

The greater challenge was the mental and moral injury that followed.

For years, Groves tried to get back to the person he had been before he was wounded. Eventually, he realized that recovery wasn’t about returning to his old self.

“The rebuilding process really did not begin until I accepted that I had changed,” he says.

That realization changed the way he viewed his future. Rather than asking how he could become the person he once was, he began asking what he could do with the person he had become.

That perspective now informs how he talks about transition with other Veterans.

THE UNIFORM COMES OFF

Groves’ military retirement did not produce the free time he had promised his wife.

Instead, it opened the door to a collection of new missions.

He joined the National Park Service, where he has held leadership roles involving park operations, administration, budgeting, project management and workforce development. He has also worked with AmeriCorps, mentored transitioning service members through Hire Heroes USA, volunteered with Scouting and become deeply involved with the Warrior Bonfire Program, which serves combat-wounded Veterans.

“The uniform came off, but the desire to contribute didn’t,” Groves says.

At the National Park Service, he adapted a military leadership concept into his own philosophy: “One Team, One Park.”

The idea grew from the military phrase “One Team, One Fight.” Groves wanted to break down the silos between specialties and remind employees that visitors don’t see separate divisions – they see one park. His leadership philosophy is straightforward: Everyone has something to contribute.

“Progress usually happens when people stop worrying about whose lane something belongs in and start asking what they can contribute to the solution,” he says.

REACHING BACK

Groves’ commitment to Veterans became especially personal through Warrior Bonfire.

The late Dan Fordice, the program’s founder, helped Groves and his family during their transition from military life, providing a place to live and helping them build connections in a new community. Later, Fordice asked Groves to lead a bonfire trip.

He hasn’t looked back.

The program gives combat-wounded Veterans an opportunity to reconnect in an informal environment where difficult conversations can happen naturally. For Groves, it became an important part of discovering his own next mission.

Now he leads trips himself, including one that brings Veterans together around shared experiences and new connections.

He also sees mentorship as one of the most important responsibilities Veterans have to one another.

Through Hire Heroes USA, Groves works with transitioning service members who often make one critical mistake: They underestimate themselves.

Veterans may dismiss years of leadership, logistics, budgeting or other responsibilities as merely “additional duties.” They also may assume civilian employers understand military terminology.

“They need to find that outside person that they can hand that resume to and say, does this make sense to you?” Groves says.

His advice is simple: Don’t minimize what you have done, and don’t assume you have to figure out the next chapter alone.

“You do not get extra credit for doing it alone,” he says.

MAKING THE PLATFORM BIGGER THAN HIMSELF

Groves now has a national platform, and he intends to use it.

He wants to spotlight organizations helping Veterans, recognize the people doing that work and encourage more Veterans to reach back to those following behind them.

That message reflects his own experience. His proudest moments, he says, include hearing from former soldiers who are now preparing for retirement or transition themselves – people he once led who still trust him enough to ask for advice.

“That is a pretty good measure of whether you did something right as a leader,” he says.

That sense of responsibility extends beyond his professional life. As an assistant scoutmaster, Groves helps develop young leaders. He also started beekeeping with his children, turning a personal interest into an opportunity to teach them responsibility, entrepreneurship and community involvement.

For Groves, it all comes back to the same lesson his mentors taught him: Someone took the time to invest in him. Now it is his turn to invest in others.

“Veterans make America better because many of us continue serving long after the uniform comes off,” he says.

His next mission is simply to make sure that service continues, and to help others discover theirs.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Groves, of Clinton, is currently pursuing a Master of Science degree in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management at Clemson University, where he is finishing his second year of graduate studies. Article courtesy of G.I. Jobs Magazine, reprinted with permission.