Veteran Advocacy

Jeff MacKinnon has become a powerful figure of purpose and healing within the military and first responder communities not through any deliberate effort to “work with” veterans, but rather by being embraced and adopted by them. A commercial fisherman turned professional treasure hunter, Jeff found himself drawn into the orbit of retired soldiers, police officers, and first responders who were looking for meaning, camaraderie, and challenge beyond uniformed service. These men and women weren’t charity cases; they were leaders, adventurers, and protectors whose lives had been fractured by PTSD, traumatic brain injuries, or the deep void left after retirement. Jeff offered them something very different: not therapy, but purpose.

This mission was forged through a joint effort between Jeff MacKinnon and his longtime friend, Gunnery Sergeant Daniel Griego, USMC ret. Together, they developed a rehabilitative model unlike anything else in Canada where veterans joined shipwreck expeditions not as guests, but as crew, working shoulder to shoulder in the recovery of lost maritime history. The dangerous, technical work demanded trust, discipline, and teamwork qualities every veteran brought in spades. Jeff refuses to frame it as outreach or charity; to him, these men and women are his brothers and sisters-in-arms in a different kind of battle one fought not in combat zones but in the cold Atlantic waters and on the frontlines of historical recovery. Through this partnership, they are preserving heritage, reclaiming purpose, and proving that life after service can be not only meaningful but deeply transformational.