Originally published/aired on KNWA July 14, 2025 07:39 AM CDT; reported by Makyla Oviedo-Rodriguez. View the story on their website here.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Northwest Arkansas-based Sheep Dog Impact Assistance is rising to new heights for a cause with people across the nation.

“Kili Climb for a Cause,” part of Sheep Dog’s outdoor adventure program, set off to Africa over the weekend for its fourth year, as a selected team prepares for what could be described as a bucket list summit for many — to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest peak on the continent.

The purpose behind the climb is to prove that the challenges service members faced and the fights they’ve experienced don’t end with trauma, as the organization says, but begin with transformation.

Sergeant Major Lance Nutt, founder & CEO of the organization, said these sheep dogs are climbing the mountain for everyone who’s ever felt stuck in a valley.

The name “sheep dog” represents military veterans, law enforcement, fire and rescue, and EMS personnel, all service members often risking their lives for civilians and their country.

Teaming up with Sheep Dog is Springdale-originated Sam’s Furniture, keeping nationally impactful international initiative roots right here in Northwest Arkansas.

A partnership that’s grown throughout the years, Sam’s Furniture has aided in the mission of Sheep Dog to support service members by raising funds for the national non-profit.

And taking off four years ago in 2021, the two groups sent off their first team of 11 climbers.

Sheep Dog’s David Nathanson said that Sam’s Furniture is one of the largest furniture distributors in the country, and the collaboration between the family-owned business and Sheep Dog just made sense for a journey like this.

“They partnered up with Sheep Dog Impact Assistance and came up with this adventure where they take, first responders and veterans who have experienced trauma through their service of others, on this amazing opportunity to self-discovery, to grow, to challenge, to really push the limits of their mental, emotional and physical,” Nathanson said.

He said this initiative is all in the name of “helping folks transcend the trauma and move from a state of post-traumatic stress to a state of post-traumatic growth.”

Being a veteran himself, serving 34 years in the Marine Corps, Nathanson says he knows what it means to carry the passion and challenges of a Sheep Dog, with this climb hoping to bring encouragement and growth after the trials that years of serving can bring.

Nathanson said one of the things many vets like himself struggle with is a sense of regret hanging up the uniform, as well as questions about their identity and agency.

After serving his country for decades, taking this climb is an opportunity to do something for himself, and to leave the regret behind.

“I want to come down realizing that the best is ahead of me, not behind me. And that’s something that a lot of veterans struggle with. We’re told when we join the military by our recruiters, this is going to be the best thing you ever do in your life. And too many of us leave the service believing that that is true,” Nathanson said. “But the reality is, for all of us, the best is yet to come. We just need to go find that next great thing and go conquer it.”

Along with the physical training that has come with preparing for the climb, Nathanson said one of his key takeaways is one he never considered during active duty — meditation.

He said he’s hoping that this newfound habit and skill will help in the healing and growth he is making internally through the climb and after.

But it’s not just a trek on their own, it’s encouraging one another up the trek, and being an inspiration to other sheep dogs in their personal journeys.

21 years ago, Danielle Green lost her dominant left arm in Iraq and her first prayer, she said was to live.

This week, she’s counting down the days until she takes the trek up Mount Kilimanjaro for her first time.

Her second prayer, Green said was to tell her story, one she spends much of her life doing and something she feels “Kili Climb for a Cause” is aiding her in.

Being a disabled veteran, Green said she knows this trek will push her beyond her comfort levels, but she knows what it means to be part of a team when you need it most, something she learned on the battlefield.

“Just like when I was fighting to survive on that rooftop, I didn’t get off that rooftop on my own. There were eight other soldiers that helped carry me from the rooftop, put me on top of the Humvee, and drove me to the green zone where the hospital was… My goal is to complete this with my team and to spread the word to get more warriors and first responders out of their countries, out of their houses, and out into the world to share their story and to live their lives while we’re still here on this earth,” Green said.

You can learn more about “Kili Climb for a Cause” on the transformative initiative’s website.