Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Elisabeth Joy Collura, who served as an aviator with the 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Elisabeth Joy (Collura) dedicated 11 years to military service and continues to serve Veterans through unique integrative therapy approaches. Joy grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, attending Hathaway Brown School for high school, from which she graduated in 1996. After graduation, she studied biological sciences at Ohio University while simultaneously enrolling in the ROTC program, where she was a distinguished military graduate. She began active-duty service in 2000.
While in the Army, Joy served as an aviator in the 101st Airborne Division, deploying to Afghanistan in 2002 and Iraq in 2003 flying CH-47D Chinook helicopters. During these combat tours, she was promoted to captain and served in company flight operations as a liaison officer, an executive officer and flight platoon leader. She continued her military education in the Aviation Officer Advanced Course at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Upon completing active duty, she joined the Texas Army National Guard.
In the Texas Army National Guard, Joy became an instructor with the Officer Candidate School in Texas. She also worked as deputy director of strategic initiatives for the Texas Military Department, coordinating community relations between federal, state and non-governmental organizations. She furthered her strategic studies in the Intermediate Level Education Course at the Command General Staff College and earned a rating in the UH-60A/L Black Hawk. Joy finished her military career as the State Aviation Training Officer and Commander of the Texas National Guard’s aeromedical evacuation company, Company C, 2nd Battalion, 149th Aviation Regiment, known as “Alamo Dustoff.”
Although her service in uniform ended in 2011, Joy still seeks to serve and advocate for the Veterans in her community. Throughout her service in the National Guard, she attained a license in massage therapy and provided advanced clinical massages at the Peak Performance Institute. She also attained a masters in kinesiology exercise and sport psychology from the University of Texas at Austin in 2013. In 2014, she founded her own business in Austin, Texas. LCR Wellness serves Veterans with integrative therapy. It is an occupation journey she started in order to manage her own service-connected PTSD and back issues. One of the main her goals is to develop mindful movement therapies for Veterans and others struggling with PTSD.
Currently, Joy is charting her path under the supervision of doctors both at her local VA outpatient clinic and in the private sector. She has stated that the care she receives has been essential for her journey.
Joy also volunteers with the Commission on Veterans Affairs to advise city council members on behalf of service members and their families.
Joy followed her passion in dance and dance directed with the Austin Veterans Art Festival from 2018 to 2022. She is on the Advisor Board for the Veterans Suicide Prevention Channel. Beyond her work with Veterans, she works as an actor and model with Callidus Agency, a Texas entertainment agency, and has appeared in supporting roles in feature films and theater. Currently, she is a licensed massage therapist at Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa in Austin. She is preparing to graduate in August of 2023 from Austin Community College with an AAS in Radio Television Film and Emerging Media Production.
We honor her service.
Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay
Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? You’re in luck! VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service.
It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. All it takes is an email to newmedia@va.gov with as much information as you can put together, along with some good photos. Visit our blog post about nominating to learn how to create the best submission.
Writer: Sarah McDonald
Editor: Cate Manning
Researcher: Gabriella Begley
Graphic Designer: Charles Hundley
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wow! thanks for your service from a vietnam air force vet and nj air guardsman. wow you a beautifull lady and a dancer and therapist. may god bless you!