About Us
We the Veterans and Military Families is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization created by veterans and military family members
Our Mission
Empower the veteran and military family community to strengthen American democracy
Our Vision
A more perfect Union
Our Team
To best serve and represent our dual community, We the Veterans and Military Families Foundation’s Bylaws require that at least one of the Executive Director and the Executive Chairman is a veteran and at least one is a military family member.
Ellen Gustafson
Navy Spouse
Co-Founder and Executive Director
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Ellen Gustafson is a proud Navy Spouse and Navy and Coast Guard Granddaughter. She is a Co-Founder and the Executive Director of We the Veterans & Military Families, a non-partisan, non-profit organization that empowers the veteran and military family community to strengthen democracy. She is also the Co-Founder of the Military Family Building Coalition, the first non-profit supporting active duty military in building their families. She previously co-founded FEED, Food Tank and co-directed the Summit Institute. Ellen is the author of "We the Eaters: If We Change Dinner, We Can Change the World," has been a Fortune Most Powerful Women Entrepreneur and given four TEDxTalks. She lives with her husband and three young children in Virginia Beach, VA.
Ellen is a member of the Board of We the Veterans Society for American Democracy and is the Executive Director and Board member of We the Veterans Foundation. As Executive Director, Ellen is the chief executive officer of We the Veterans, overseeing all general management and operations.
Jeremy Butler
Navy Reservist
Board Member and Chairman, Vet the Vote
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Jeremy Butler is a Board Member and the Chairman of the Vet the Vote Coalition. He previously served as the Chief Executive Officer of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) for four years but joined thestaff of IAVA in 2015 where he worked in various capacities with the fundraising team. In 2018 he transitioned to Chief Operating Officer and in 2019 took over as CEO. He currently serves as a member of the board of directors of both IAVA and Veterans for Political Innovation.
Jeremy served on active duty in the Navy from 1999 – 2005 as a Surface Warfare Officer. He transitioned to the Reserves and has remained there since. He holds the rank of Captain (O-6) and is assigned to the staff of Commander, Naval Surface Forces, US Pacific Fleet.
Coming off active duty, he began working for a DC-based government contractor and served in a variety of roles to include work for the Department of Homeland Security, the Joint Staff, and the Department of the Navy. Throughout, he spent several years back on active duty both overseas and in the US.
He attended Knox College in Galesburg, IL and graduated with an International Relations major. He later received his M.A. in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College.
Jeremy is a member of the board of We the Veterans Foundation and chairs the Vet the Vote Coalition.
Ben Keiser
Marine Corps Veteran
Co-Founder and Executive Chairman
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Ben Keiser joined the Marine Corps while in college, serving in the reserves into law school, and deploying to theater for OIF. After graduating, Ben practiced at a large law firm in Washington, D.C. and New York where he focused on sustainability. He currently serves as the Chief Risk Officer of Elutions, a multinational AI company. Ben is the son of a Vietnam era Navy surface warfare officer and grandson of a WWII Army medic. He lives with his wife and rescue dog in Phoenix, AZ.
Ben is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Society for American Democracy and Executive Chairman of the We the Veterans Foundation. As Executive Chairman, Ben co-chairs the Board, advises the executive team, and works with the Executive Director to set strategic direction and operational priorities.
Anil Nathan
Air Force Veteran
Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Board
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Anil Nathan is a first-generation American and second-generation Air Force veteran, following his father who was drafted during the Vietnam War after emigrating from India. Anil works in management consulting, bringing his experience as a product and operations leader in tech to clients looking to launch new products and services with speed. Anil was previously the General Manager for Aviation at Uber, where he led the company's near-term aviation products. Anil, his wife, and his son live outside of New York City.
Anil is a member of the Board of We the Veterans Society for American Democracy and is the Co-Chairman of the Board of We the Veterans Foundation. As Co-Chairman, Anil advises the Executive Director and Executive Chairman on matters of strategic importance and Co-Chairs the Board.
Joe Plenzler
Marine Corps Veteran
Board Member and Communications Advisor
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Joe Plenzler is a combat decorated Marine Corps veteran. He served 20 years on active duty as an infantry officer and as a public affairs officer. During his time in uniform, Joe planned and executed the largest media embed program in Marine Corps history during the invasion of Iraq, served as the senior U.S. military spokesperson in Indonesia during the international disaster relief mission in the wake of the Boxing Day tsunami, and served in the Pentagon as the spokesman, press secretary, and staff group director for the 34th, 35th, and 36th Commandants of the Marine Corps. Retiring in 2015, he has served as an EVP of marketing and membership, a national director of media relations, and a director of communication for large nationally recognized veteran service organizations. Today, he is a co-founder of Cassandra Helenus Partners - a leadership coaching and human communication firm.
Joe is a member of the Boards of We the Veterans Society for American Democracy and We the Veterans Foundation. Joe also advises We the Veterans Foundation on public relations, media, and communications strategy.
Dan Vallone
Army Veteran
Director, Vet the Vote
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Dan Vallone graduated from West Point in 2007 and deployed to Afghanistan with OEF. Most recently served as the Director of More in Common US, a research nonprofit focused on reducing polarization in America. Research that Dan led has been cited hundreds of times in media outlets including the New York Times, Financial Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Houston Chronicle, Washington Times, and dozens of other outlets. Previously, Dan worked at the local, state, and national level on efforts to bring Americans together for common purpose.
After West Point, Dan earned an MA in Contemporary China from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore on a Fulbright Scholarship and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Dan is also a Visiting Fellow with the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, where he works on how to build connections between veterans and the broader American society.
As Director for the Vet the Vote Coalition, Dan is responsible for supporting the Coalition in its efforts to recruit veterans and military family members to serve as poll workers across the country.
Ingrid Sundlee
Army Daughter
Chief of Staff
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Ingrid Sundlee is the daughter of an Army veteran. She has nearly 15 years of communications and project management experience with the federal government, including extensive work on humanitarian disaster relief in Iraq, Nigeria, and the Caribbean. She has an MA in International Relations from the University of Nottingham.
Ingrid was our first staff member and was instrumental in the launch of the Vet the Vote Campaign in her previous role as the Director of Civic Engagement for the We the Veterans.
James Patrick
Army Veteran
Board Member
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James Patrick is a 20+ year technology leader whose professional experience spans his own software startup and executive positions in fintech, cryptocurrency, financial services, and sustainability. James is Chairman of the Board of Sound Off (a non-profit telemedicine app connecting veterans and servicemembers with mental health resources) and was a Green Beret team leader in the US Army.
James is a member of the Board of We the Veterans Foundation.
Jermaine Clark
Army Veteran
Board Member
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Jermaine Clark is an Army veteran. He just wants to create content that commands your attention and causes self-reflection with emotional messaging. He spends most of his time daydreaming about the subconscious psychology of an image’s composition and how to wield that power to his own, aforementioned, ends. Unfortunately, he hasn’t mastered this universal language but, in its pursuit, this scrappy military-brat has traveled to more than 70 countries, dove more than 300 dives, had 7 near death experiences, swam with sharks, deployed to Iraq, started a boutique marketing agency and an IT Joint-Venture, and convinced a perfectly healthy and sane woman to co-create a son named Odysseus.
Jermaine is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Society for American Democracy.
Christa Sperling
Air Force Veteran
Co-Founder and Board Member
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Christa Sperling is an Air Force veteran. She attended the U.S. Air Force Academy and served five years on active duty, including two in information operations. Following her service, Christa spent several years as a consultant for multiple government agencies while completing her MBA in Finance from Johns Hopkins University. Soon after, she joined a public affairs firm in New York City, providing strategic counsel and tactical support to companies on high-profile corporate, financial and crisis communications matters. Today, Christa is a Corporate Communciations Vice President for a major financial services institution.
Christa is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Society for American Democracy.
Glenn Schatz
Navy Veteran
Co-Founder and Board Member
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Glenn Schatz is Vice President of Community Partnerships at Care Access, a company accelerating public access to new therapies and making clinical trials a care option for every patient. At Care Access, he leads the team focused on increasing trial participation by improving the way the industry works with physicians, patients, and organizations in traditionally underserved communities.
He has also held senior-level positions at BlocPower, Link Labs, and the U.S. Department of Energy. Earlier, he co-founded Energy Conversion Research (ECoRE) Ventures and was an adjunct professor at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Glenn started his career as an officer in the Navy, where he worked as an engineer-qualified nuclear submarine officer on a guided missile submarine. Glenn received his master’s degree in national security policy from Georgetown University and his bachelor’s degree from The United States Naval Academy. Glenn resides in Baltimore with his spouse and two young children.
Glenn is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Foundation and the We the Veterans Society for American Democracy.
Noah Kanter
Army Veteran
Board Member
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Noah Kanter is a US Army Cavalry veteran who served in Germany, Kosovo, and Iraq. He has worked across the U.S. government in the fields of defense, diplomacy, and development. Noah specializes in linking operational inputs to long-term policy and strategic outcomes, especially with regards to global conflict. He currently works on ensuring civilian oversight of the use of military force in contingency situations. He graduated with a masters in international affairs and international economics from Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies and a bachelors in chemistry from Cornell University. He currently lives in Washington D.C. with his wonderful partner and their stubborn corgi.
Noah is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Foundation.
Mike Smith
Navy Veteran
Co-Founder and Board Member
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Mike Smith is a Navy veteran and a former FA-18 pilot, with three deployments to the Western Pacific. After leaving the service, Mike founded RenewWest, a company focused on post-wildfire reforestation for achieving climate outcomes and leveraging carbon markets. In that capacity, he developed the largest carbon-focused reforestation project in U.S. history. He enjoys smart conversation, hard problems, and quiet places. Mike and his wife have two great kids and live in Denver, Colorado.
Mike is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Society for American Democracy.
Maggie DeLany
Navy Veteran
Co-Founder and Board Member
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Maggie is a third-generation veteran; her father and both grandfathers served in the military. After graduating from the US Naval Academy in 2000, Maggie spent eight years in the Navy, in Japan, Bahrain, Guam and Iraq. She then worked for eight years as a Department of Defense civilian, deploying twice to Afghanistan. Maggie earned her Masters degree in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University in 2019, completing a thesis in which she explored the relationship between Russian propaganda and the rise of the alt-right in the US. Maggie lives in Vienna, Austria, with her husband and three children.
Maggie is a member of the board of the We the Veterans Foundation.
We the Veterans Society for American Democracy is a 501(c)(19) veterans organization.
We the Veterans Foundation is recognized by the IRS as tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.