STAFF

Jay Kopelman, Executive Director

Jay Kopelman is a retired Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel who served in combat in Iraq - where he earned the Combat Action Ribbon - as a liaison officer with an Iraqi Army battalion during the November 2004 Battle of Fallujah. He also served as the I Marine Expeditionary Force SOF Liaison Officer. His last assignment was as the Deputy Director for advisor training at Camp Pendleton. He is a sought-after speaker and radio and television guest and co-host. He has been the featured speaker at The Clinton School of Public Service, the Reserve Officer Leadership Symposium, the Veterans Health Administration annual conference and the 2008 Cyber-Therapy Conference, an international conference attended by physicians, psychologists and therapists from 28 countries. Mr. Kopelman is seen regualarly on television news as an expert on military issues. He is the author of two books, The New York Times and international bestselling memoir, From Baghdad, With Love: A Marine, the War, and a Dog Named Lava; and From Baghdad to America: Life Lessons From a Dog Named Lava. Since retiring from the Marine Corps, Mr. Kopelman has become an advocate for veterans and their numerous causes. He brings his passion for these causes to Freedom Is Not Free in an effort to create greater awareness of the issues our veterans and their families face and to champion those causes to the American public. Mr. Kopelman serves as a member of the advisory board at the Virtual Reality Medical Center, a San Diego-based facility with offices in Los Angeles and Palo Alto, CA, that uses VR to treat patients with a variety of phobias and is a leader in the use of VR to treat returning veterans suffering from TBI and PTSD by the process of graded exposure therapy. Mr. Kopelman held numerous positions of leadership at a variety of commands during his 20-year military career. He earned his Naval Aviator wings on September 25, 1987 and his Naval Parachutist wings in 1995. Mr. Kopelman has 100 carrier arrested landings on a variety of aircraft carriers. He is a 1982 graduate of the University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida.

Barbara Creed, Development Director

Barbara Creed has been a military spouse for over 19 years. She has also dedicated her time and energies as a volunteer, mother and elementary education teacher. She first learned of Freedom Is Not Free when she and her family relocated to the San Diego area from MCAS Beaufort, SC. Her children attended Freedom Is Not Free’s “Little Warrior Surf Camp” for military children in La Jolla. After learning more about Freedom Is Not Free and the many ways it helps our military service members and their families, she chose to pursue the opportunity to assisting Freedom is Not Free in fundraising and event planning and execution. Additionally, Barbara has been involved in volunteering at her church and her children’s school; with the Officers’ Spouse Clubs at various bases; and the Junior Leagues of Orange County, Savannah, and Pensacola. She has been trained as a Key Volunteer, Family Readiness Advisor, Command Team Training, and in L.I.N.K.S. She is a 1990 graduate of Bowling Green State University.

Beverly Bratek, Volunteer

Beverly Bratek is a retired registered nurse and patriotic American. When approached to come aboard FREEDOM IS NOT FREE she instantly and enthusiastically replied, "Yes!" Through her experiences as a nurse, Ms. Bratek has seen first-hand the difficulties many families have dealing with the illness, injury and death of a loved one. Furthermore, through her own experience with the loss of a son in an aviation mishap, Ms. Bratek brings a profound sense of empathy to the mission for those parents of fallen soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen. She also has a deep appreciation and understanding of the military medical system and community -- Ms. Bratek was a civil service nurse at Camp Pendleton during the Vietnam War. We are pleased and grateful that Ms. Bratek has joined us here at FREEDOM IS NOT FREE and value the experience and empathy she brings to helping wounded veterans, their families and the families of fallen soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen.

Business phone: (858) 847-9999

Fax: (858) 793-5357

E-mail: info@FreedomIsNotFree.com