Gunny’s Warriors houses 19 veteran families after flood, launches Sept. 11 Flags of Honor
Jan and Mike Pieraccini founded Gunny’s Warriors five years ago in memory of their son, initially focused on traumatic brain injury education and awareness among veterans.
The Smoke Pit started small — a casual gathering named after the informal spaces on military bases where deployed troops go to decompress, no agenda required.
It has grown to 25-30 participants. It meets twice a month, usually at a local restaurant. It has become one of the most effective tools Gunny’s Warriors has for reaching younger veterans who would never walk into a formal counseling session but will show up for dinner with people who understand.
“It’s building a phone tree,” Jan Pieraccini said Wednesday on Lead Live. “We know all these guys. If we don’t see them for a while, we check on them.”
Jan and Mike Pieraccini founded Gunny’s Warriors five years ago in memory of their son, initially focused on traumatic brain injury education and awareness among veterans. As they engaged with local families, they found veterans falling through the cracks between large agencies — not qualifying for VA services, not reaching out to crisis lines, quietly struggling with rent, electricity, food, isolation.
The Warriors Collective now handles those immediate crises directly: vetting urgent financial needs and stepping in quickly with rent, utilities, grocery runs, house cleaning, and emergency housing. After the July 2026 flood, the organization housed 19 veteran families who had been displaced.
The organization recently rebranded its signature event from Kerrville Flags of Honor to a standalone name reflecting its growing independence from any single partner organization. The 2026 Flags of Honor runs Sept. 11-13 at the Hill Country Youth Event Center’s River Star Park, featuring 500 American-made flags — each representing a personal hero nominated by a community member — illuminated and displayed across the grounds. A 9/11 ceremony begins at 8:45 a.m. Friday. A dedication ceremony Saturday will feature Mayor Bill Herring among the speakers.
“It’s a thank-you to our community,” Jan Pieraccini said. “It’s a thank-you for being so generous to us.”
Author
Related Articles
Texas Transplant Network: a kidney recipient, a grieving father, and a fund named after a 19-year-old who saved nine lives
The Texas Transplant Network, which Pendergraft founded and which received its 501(c)(3) designation in May 2025, addresses a specific financial barrier: the donor’s costs.
Symphony of the Hills opens season Oct. 8 with Weber and Brahms — and the Governor came to their July 4 concert
Dowdy, the orchestra’s conductor and artistic director, appeared alongside Board President Tim Summerlin to discuss a season that is both one of the symphony’s most programmatically ambitious in its 26-year history.
Sisters in Service: the nonprofit that shows up for other nonprofits — 11-hour days and a golf tournament coming
Sisters in Service began as a Bible study. It evolved into something harder to categorize — a logistics operation embedded in the Hill Country’s nonprofit network, deploying volunteers and resources wherever the gap opens.
Comments (0)
There are no comments on this article.