He was a South Side Chicago kid battling addiction and losing control of his life. Today, he’s Father Ryan Brady, a chaplain serving alongside the Chicago Fire Department and guiding others through their own moments of crisis.

In this episode, we talk about hitting rock bottom, rediscovering faith, and what it means to find purpose on the other side of surrender. It’s a story of struggle, redemption, and service that reminds us how far grace can reach

Still Here 🤙🏻🌐 Website: www.BeyondtheDispatch.com🎧 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F6...⁠🎧 Subscribe for weekly episodes that bring you inside the minds of America’s warriors — after the fight ends.

In this episode, we sit down with Gerald “Gerry” Vetters, a Navy veteran and retired Division Chief of Investigations from the Oak Lawn Police Department. Gerry opens up about his journey from part-time cop to leading major investigations, sharing wild K-9 stories, a near-death experience, and intense attempted murder cases along the way. We also get into what’s really going on in law enforcement today, how the job has changed, and what most people on the outside never see. If you like real, unfiltered stories from someone who has been there and done it, this one’s for you.

Still Here 🤙🏻🌐 Website: www.BeyondtheDispatch.com🎧 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F6...⁠🎧 Subscribe for weekly episodes that bring you inside the minds of America’s warriors — after the fight ends.

Sat down with Jason Yerkovich, author of Carrying the Fire, for a real conversation about mental health, resilience, and what it takes to keep going when life hits hard.

We dive into his book, the struggles behind it, and the mindset needed to push through adversity when everything in you wants to quit. This is an honest look at what it means to carry your past, face it, and still move forward.

If you’ve ever battled your own thoughts or felt the weight of it all, this one’s for you.

🤙🏻 Still Here

🌐 Website: www.BeyondtheDispatch.com🎧 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F6...⁠🎧 Subscribe for weekly episodes that bring you inside the minds of America’s warriors — after the fight ends.

In this episode of Beyond The Dispatch, I sit down with Ken Tworek — retired police officer, Medal of Valor recipient, licensed social worker, and founder of Three Block Solutions.

Ken opens up about his experience surviving a life-threatening ambush in the line of duty and how that moment transformed his purpose. We talk about resilience, trauma, leadership, and the work he’s doing to support first responders through real-world stress and mental health challenges.

This conversation goes deep — from the badge to the human behind it.

Still Here 🤙🏻🌐 Website: www.BeyondtheDispatch.com🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F6...🎧 Subscribe for weekly episodes that bring you inside the minds of America’s warriors — after the fight ends.

In this episode, we sit down with acclaimed filmmaker Charlie Minn to discuss the 2008 Lane Bryant shooting in Tinley Park, Illinois, where five women were tragically murdered in a suburban retail store — a case that remains officially unsolved.

Charlie shares the story behind his latest documentary, Who Killed These Women? The Tinley Park 5. We also talk about his career and several of his other films. Charlie is known for hard-hitting true-crime documentaries such as 47 Hours to Live, The Delphi Murders, and Murder in Mansfield, where he focuses on giving victims and families a voice while digging deep into the facts of each case.

Still Here 🤙🏻🌐 Website: www.BeyondtheDispatch.com🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F60PV7sTWWNIsLVJF?si=tkmapUPKS4SIyvMA_pqI4g🎧 Subscribe for weekly episodes that bring you inside the minds of America’s warriors — after the fight ends.#FlightMedic #LineOfDuty #PoliceShooting #CriticalCareTransport #BeyondTheDispatch

There was a blood trail from the ambulance bay into the ER.

Tony Smith is a former firefighter/paramedic who transitioned into flight medicine — and he was the critical care medic responsible for transporting Dom after his line-of-duty shooting.

Before anyone confirmed it, Tony knew it was a cop. The police presence was overwhelming. Drones overhead. Helicopters in the air. When they landed at Bolingbrook, he remembers walking into the hospital and seeing blood leading into the trauma bay.

While Dom was in CT, Tony and his partner split roles. One reviewing live scans. The other priming blood, preparing TXA and calcium, setting up the ventilator — working toward their 15-minute transfer goal. Their mindset is simple: if a patient has a chance, they move fast to get them to the highest level of care available.

He remembers Dom fighting the tube. Moving all four extremities. A sign that there was still a fight left in him.

For the first time, Tony sits across from a former patient and revisits that night from inside the aircraft cabin. This episode isn’t about the gunfire. It’s about what happens after — when speed, training, and controlled decision-making determine whether someone makes it.

Still Here 🤙🏻

He saw Bin Laden before 9/11.
He pulled the trigger on the first Hellfire ever fired from a drone in combat.

Colonel Scott Swanson spent 20 years in the U.S. Air Force — from flying Pave Hawks in Desert Storm to helping pioneer armed Predator drone operations in Afghanistan. In 2000, he watched Osama bin Laden walk out into the open. The strike never came.

One year later, after 9/11, Scott and his team became the tip of the spear — arming the Predator, hunting Taliban leadership, and firing the first Hellfire missile ever launched from a UAV in combat history. He was also overhead during Operation Anaconda and the Battle of Roberts Ridge, witnessing the events that would later lead to John Chapman receiving the Medal of Honor.

This episode dives into:

• The mission that almost changed history before 9/11

• The first armed drone strike of the War on Terror

• The psychological weight of “combat to cul-de-sac” warfare

• Watching war in high definition… then going home to dinner

This isn’t a tech story. It’s a human one. About responsibility. Restraint. And living with the “what if.”

Still Here 🤙🏻

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👉 Follow Beyond the Dispatch for raw stories that bring our heroes out of the shadows — and give them the mic.

We went live during the Project Fire Buddies Gala setup to capture the heart of the mission before the doors even opened. This episode features conversations with the people who help make Project Fire Buddies what it is today.

We sat down with Kevyn Holdefer, Ryan Ballard, Kelly DeGroot, Kurt DeGroot, and actor Matthew Willig to talk about how Project Fire Buddies was built, why it matters, and the powerful impact it has by pairing firefighters with children facing serious medical challenges.

At its core, Project Fire Buddies is about connection, consistency, and showing up — creating lasting bonds and more good days for kids and families who need them most. These conversations set the tone for an incredible night and an even greater mission.

Still Here 🤙🏻🎧 BTD Website: https://www.BeyondtheDispatch.comBTD Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2jRR6F60PV7sTWWNIsLVJF?si=tkmapUPKS4SIyvMA_pqI4g