Whether putting themselves in harms way or being away from their loved ones the sacrifices that the men and women in our country’s armed services have made over the past 5 years while engaged in Iraq and Afganistan are too many to number. I look at my son who has been on this earth just 14 months and to think of all the things I would have missed had I been away just 1 month let alone 15+ months at a time makes me too sad to dwell on for too long. But they keep doing it, the average person on the ground in Iraq has been there more than once, this fact speaks volumes about these men and women and the job they are doing. They have a mission, and they aren’t satisfied until that mission is accomplished, be it another 3 months or 5 years down the road. It was an honor for me to have served in the armed forces and it remains an honor to continue to do what we can to support them while they do their jobs.

- John Betz, TakePride Co-Founder, Los Angeles, California

I grew up loving this country, believing in its greatness and devoted to what it stood for. I still do and always will. But if you told me when I was 12 that when I grew up that the United States would fight two long, difficult wars while significant portions of the American public tuned out this reality for months at a time, I would’ve never believed it.

Five years after the start of the war, I feel the same way I did when I decided to help launch TakePride 2 years ago – that America is falling short of its ideals. And that the spirit of the country and those who’ve sacrificed the most for it are suffering as a result. Everyone has a different take on this, and I know plenty of members of the military and their families who feel that the support they receive is incredible – for these people I couldn’t be happier. But from what I see, ‘American society,’ especially in the last few years, has chosen to largely shield itself from the reality of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. At times, I know that I’ve been as guilty as anyone. It’s not a pleasant reality. And clearly people shouldn’t be expected to think about the wars or the troops all the time. But for a country that prides itself on being the most charitable in the world – reacting with heartwarming generosity to tsunamis and earthquakes, famines and disease, and that’s now taking truly dramatic measures to protect the environment – our reaction as a country, to men and women who’ve gone to war for America, seems underwhelming.

The world is in danger of reeling out of control. And at the end of the day, one of the only things holding it together is the men and women of the US military. They have been asked to shoulder a greater burden than is proper to ask of any person; 4000 young Americans have died; tens of thousands have been horribly wounded; over a million have risked their lives and been separated from their families and friends for years at a time, and there is no end in sight. And yet they don’t complain. They don’t demand. They love this country as much or more than they ever did.

If the country fails to properly thank and recognize these men and women, it will not only affect them and their families, it will diminish a central part of what makes this country great.

-Pat Gray, TakePride Co-Founder, New York, New York

I’ve always enjoyed and paid pretty close attention to camouflage patterns and their use within the apparel industry. At some point it seemed like ‘camo’ was everywhere. Maybe I was just overwhelmed with it, being a skateboarder and seeing it saturating the market around me. I saw it on everything from clothing & hats to even sneakers and accessories. And to tell you the truth, I loved it. I’m not sure why, but there was something cool about wearing a piece of clothing inspired by military related style.

Skipping to the present…. ‘Civilian camo’ is definitely still around and in most cases being used on all of the same types of clothing and more. I’ve seen it used by almost everyone from high-end runway style designers to packaging designers that now specialize in only camo. It’s all over the place both literally & figuratively and in most cases it has nothing to do with the military or our troops that are wearing it every day. Why hasn’t someone used this successful pattern on something that looks good but also holds some true appreciation for the origin and the people that have to wear it day-to-day? These are the types of questions that provoke the design process for me.

The reason I’m involved with TakePride is because of questions like this and it wasn’t until my involvement, being a designer and having to challenge things, that I asked my self ‘why’. But beyond realizing that the use of camo within design has always lacked meaning, we also noticed that everyone seemed to use the older, more standard design and that there wasn’t much use of the current digital pattern. That’s when we decided to challenge this trend and create something new. And so, as a tribute to our men & women serving overseas, we released the TakePride logo tee using the more current digital camouflage pattern.

Don’t get me wrong, I still love all things ‘old’ camo, and strongly support the veterans who’ve worn this design in the past – but it was only right for us to use the appropriate pattern with the hope that when people wear it, they’re reminded of those who on a daily basis need to wear this camo. We hope it serves as a constant reminder of those serving now and also the past 5 years, throughout which our friends and family have been fighting in the war. …..Oh and we also tried to make it one of the coolest shirts so far.

-Ryan Paonessa, TakePride Designer, Brooklyn, New York