A patriotic spectacle Nov. 3 at The Nest Golf Club in Bonita Springs — complete with Army generals and a Lee County Sheriff’s Office helicopter flyover — was more than a salute to Veterans Day. It marked the 10th anniversary of the nonprofit Home Base Florida’s signature fundraiser, created to combat veteran suicide and the invisible wounds of war.
More than two dozen local businesses sponsored the sold-out Home Base Golf Tournament and dinner, raising funds for the nonprofit’s mission to provide world-class clinical care, wellness, peer support and research programs at no cost for veterans and their families.
Over the past decade, the event has generated more than $2 million for Home Base programs. This year alone, organizers said, it brought in another $380,000 to support veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, traumatic brain injury and other service-related trauma.
“There are thousands of people who have a better life because of what you people are doing out here,” retired Army Brig. Gen. Edward L. Dyer told 244 golfers before they teed off for the charity tournament.
Air Force veteran and Fort Myers resident Tyler King, 44, is one of them.
King served six years in the military, including as a security specialist in Iraq — an experience she described as both formative and deeply challenging. She credits it as “one of the best decisions I made in my life.”
Spectators photograph a Lee County Sheriff’s Office helicopter flyover during the opening ceremony of the Home Base Golf Tournament on Nov. 3 at The Nest Golf Club in Bonita Springs.
Evan Williams
But the violence she witnessed overseas left lasting effects. She returned home struggling with trauma and PTSD, which she said made it difficult to connect emotionally with her teenage children and co-workers.
“The crazy thing is, you’re in the military but you don’t really know how much the military has changed you,” King said. “They build you up to what they want you to be. And then you’re operating in a certain way. Then it’s like, how do you turn that off? You don’t just turn that off automatically. It’s engrained in you. It’s a part of you.”
In 2024, King found herself at a low point — newly divorced, laid off and recovering from knee surgery. After hearing about Home Base from a friend, she enrolled in its 90-day Warrior Health and Fitness Program. With guidance from a certified trainer, she rebuilt her physical strength and confidence and eventually began teaching fitness classes again.
A singer performs the national anthem beside an honor guard during the opening ceremony of the Home Base Florida Golf Tournament on Nov. 3 at The Nest Golf Club in Bonita Springs.
Evan Williams
King also participated in Home Base’s Skillful Parenting and Impact of Trauma programs, which helped her manage her PTSD and connected her children with others whose parents had served.
“I feel so much more confident,” King said. “My outlook and my thought process is completely different. I really do credit Home Base with that.”
Home Base is a national nonprofit and the first and largest private-sector clinic in the U.S. dedicated to treating the invisible wounds of war. Founded in partnership with Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University, it offers a full range of clinical and wellness programs for veterans, service members and their families.
Home Base Florida, its first affiliate program, launched in 2014 to serve the state’s large veteran population.
“We have a lot of veterans, and the state hasn’t done well in dealing with the issues they’re dealing with,” said Home Base Senior Director Armando Hernandez, a Marine Corps veteran. “This is something that is a hazard of military service and it will not go away.”
A bagpiper performs for golfers lined up in carts before the start of the 10th annual Home Base Florida Golf Tournament at The Nest Golf Club in Bonita Springs.
Evan Williams
Home Base works in collaboration with Florida health care partners, including Lee Health in Lee County, David Lawrence Centers in Naples and Lakeview Center in Pensacola.
“It’s all anchored in a community of goodwill here in Southwest Florida,” said Home Base Executive Director Jack Hammond, a retired Army brigadier general.
Home Base Florida offers in-person programs in Fort Myers, Naples, Tampa and Pensacola, along with virtual services through telehealth across the state. More information is available at homebase.org/florida.