Eagle Rock Camp Builds a Stronger Tech Foundation to Help More Veteran Families Heal
For more than a decade, Eagle Rock Camp, operating as Eagle Rock National Center for Veteran Families, has helped military and veteran families heal from the hidden wounds of service. Founded in 2011, the faith-based nonprofit offers free, immersive retreats that bring families together to reconnect, rebuild relationships, and restore hope through outdoor experiences and workshops, setting them on paths to heal the moral and spiritual wounds of military service. Their motto says it plainly: Strengthening Marriages. Rejuvenating Families.
Eagle Rock Camp was entering a period of rapid growth. It was formalizing its brand, hiring new leaders, and preparing to serve more families, all without a dedicated IT person on staff. Lynn Marilla, Founder and President of Eagle Rock Camp, was candid that technology was not her background. Important records, like the safety inspections the team completes before choosing a retreat site, still lived on paper. And after a waitlist that once held 2,500 families shrank to about 800, the team needed better ways to reach and recruit the families it exists to serve.
To build the foundation for that growth, Eagle Rock Camp joined Apparo’s G.A.I.N. (Growth, Agility and Innovation for Nonprofits) cohort, a one-year nonprofit accelerator program powered by Lowe’s. As part of G.A.I.N., Apparo matched Eagle Rock Camp with a skilled volunteer team from Coca-Cola Consolidated to work on a Community Impact Project focused on creating a technology plan. Brenna Heflin, Program Associate at Apparo, guided the project from kickoff to wrap-up.
Building Eagle Rock Camp’s Technology Plan and Implementation Roadmap
The volunteer team started by evaluating and documenting Eagle Rock Camp’s current technology, including its risks, gaps, and pain points. From there, the team delivered a prioritized two-to-three-year roadmap, with a detailed one-year timeline and cost estimates for the highest-priority initiatives, plus clear, actionable steps to get each recommendation done. The team didn’t stop at the plan. After delivering the roadmap, the volunteers met with Eagle Rock Camp for one hour each week over eight weeks to help the organization put quick wins and short-term recommendations into action. Changes to Eagle Rock Camp’s Microsoft 365 setup have already reduced its cybersecurity risk, and the organization has begun standardizing its staff laptops so every new team member starts with the same reliable setup.
CCP Tech’sBill Hammelman, a longtime G.A.I.N. volunteer and a veteran himself, played a key role along the way. “Bill has been a jewel,” Lynn said. “He has gone above and beyond for Eagle Rock.” The relationship has been so valuable that Eagle Rock Camp is now discussing ongoing IT support with Bill. For Lynn, the learning was just as important as the deliverables. “I’m not an IT person, so I walked into this project with no expectations,” she said. “The Coca-Cola Consolidated team and Apparo have taught me so much. There is still a lot I don’t know, but I understand so much more than when we started.”
The tech plan is one part of Eagle Rock Camp’s wider G.A.I.N. experience. The organization has also started the program’s AI work stream, completing an AI readiness assessment and already using AI to write clearer job descriptions grounded in trauma-informed care. Apparo also referred Eagle Rock Camp to a Salesforce implementation partner that is helping bring all of its fundraising and program data into one place.
How the Tech Plan Improves Safety, Data, and Outreach for Veteran Families
Looking ahead, Eagle Rock Camp expects the tech plan to strengthen nearly every part of its work:
- Clearer, more consistent operations. Standardized processes, supported by AI, will make it easier to create employee handbooks and standard operating procedures, helping new staff get up to speed quickly as the team grows.
- Reduced risk across the organization. Eagle Rock Camp expects lower risk not only in cybersecurity, but in data management and physical safety at its retreats.
- Better data to show impact. Improved data collection and analysis will help Eagle Rock Camp demonstrate its impact to funders and supporters.
- Greater reach. Automated communications and outreach will help the team recruit more military and veteran families to its retreats.
- Deeper services. Eagle Rock Camp plans to develop a new, research-backed curriculum for the children who attend its retreats.
Physical safety is a powerful example. Eagle Rock Camp inspects every potential retreat site and has turned down facilities that don’t meet its standards. Now those inspection records live in a central database instead of on paper. “It puts everything in one location that’s easily accessible to the team, so they can see why we said no to one facility or yes to another,” Lynn explained. “And if there is ever an accident, we can go back and make sure we checked all the right boxes. We weren’t able to do that before.”
Over the course of the project, volunteers contributed more than 80 hours of support to Eagle Rock Camp, delivering a technology plan and implementation support with a fair market value of $40,000. “I can’t put a value on it. It’s been an invaluable experience for us,” Lynn said. “I can’t thank the Coca-Cola Consolidated volunteers and Apparo enough. It’s been wonderful.”
Coca-Cola Consolidated Volunteers Reflect on Serving Veteran Families
For the volunteers, the project carried special meaning. “As a veteran, getting to work on a project for veteran families was really meaningful,” said Charles. “I really, really enjoyed it.”
Jason Ave, a skilled volunteer with Coca-Cola Consolidated, joined the project during his first year with the company. “I was presented with the opportunity to try out volunteering with Apparo, and I’m very glad I did,” Jason said. “I learned a lot about drafting technology plans and consulting, and I’m glad I got to work with this team.” Charles agreed that Jason, the newest member of the team, “knocked it out of the park.”
Ashiqure Rahman has volunteered with Apparo across multiple projects. He noted that this project went further than past tech plans. “Until last year, we delivered the plan. This is the first year we also helped put solutions in place,” Ashik said. “Whatever work we can do for veterans, we would love to do. Thank you to Apparo and Eagle Rock Camp for the opportunity.”
Bill, now in his sixth year volunteering with G.A.I.N., said the Coca-Cola Consolidated team stood out. “I’ve worked with a lot of volunteer teams, and this has been one of the most professional, proactive, decisive, and flexible teams I’ve worked with personally,” Bill said. “You’re so skilled, but you’re also clearly motivated and organized, and you got a whole bunch of work done. You’re a class act.”
Lynn felt that commitment too. “Your dedication to our mission was top-notch,” she told the volunteers. “You all get it, and it’s hard to find a whole team of people who understand.”
A Stronger Foundation for Eagle Rock Camp’s Mission to Heal Veteran Families
For Eagle Rock Camp, the tech plan is about much more than technology. It gives the organization the structure it needs to welcome new staff, protect the families it serves, and grow without losing the heart of its work. The staff now feels relieved and energized to have a clear, manageable path forward, and Lynn sees implementing the recommendations as an investment in her people. “That’s why we did this: to give us the infrastructure we need and then show us how to sustain it over time,” she said.
Most of all, the project arrived at exactly the right moment. “The Coca-Cola Consolidated volunteers and Apparo were one of the missing links we needed in order to grow,” Lynn said. “The timing couldn’t have been more perfect.” With a stronger foundation in place, Eagle Rock Camp is ready to reach more military and veteran families and help them heal, reconnect, and move forward together.
