How Frost Call Works

Gaming: Games and, as participants, “gamers” reflect an engagement in any virtual or imagined activity that includes collaborative and/or competitive coordination towards a collective goal. This could be online or in-person, digital or analog. Gaming is by nature interactive, whether through discourse or the mechanisms of the game itself. Our emphasis is on gaming as a joint activity such that Frost Call members are encouraged to game together. Examples of gaming are broad and varied but include video games, board games, tabletop (e.g., Dungeons and Dragons), card games, and any interactive activity with a shared goal. 

Rationale: Gaming facilitates social connection, social connection reduces isolation, reduced loneliness increases resilience and, secondarily, makes it easier to apply resources when they are needed to reduce risk factors (e.g., financial difficulties, relationship distress). Social connection can be an important resilience factor against suicide and other mental health concerns.

Mechanism: Social connection in adulthood is hard. When we are children, our social network is all around us. This continues for those who serve, as we see the same folks every day and develop strong bonds that can become even deeper after returning from a deployment. After service, however, is where things get complicated. Making new friends or hanging on to those we’ve developed becomes strained by the challenges of life: work, family, parenthood, all compete for our attention. For those starting over in a new place, making connections means getting over the hurdles of discomfort, including the initial awkwardness that comes with getting to know new people. Frost Call helps smooth over these obstacles by creating a welcoming space with other veterans who share a common understanding of their service. We also seek to destigmatize discussions of mental health; stigma can be a major obstacle to making connections that discourages communication and enhances shame. We can’t eliminate all of the obstacles, but we can alleviate enough of the challenges to help you overcome them and develop lifelong connections, along with all of the mental health and wellbeing benefits they provide.

Model: Our model relies on building strong connections with our community, including veteran/service member organizations, gaming spaces, and the community members we serve. We host community meetups, Battle Buddy events, and Deployable Gaming Events with our partner organizations and in turn invite all participants to stay connected online through our Discord server. Here we can share local resources and event programming while also creating a trusted space for veteran/service member organizations to connect directly with those they serve. We operate from a grassroots perspective, building from the bottom up to grow and connect across Boston, Massachusetts, and New England more broadly. Fundamental to this approach is a recognition that human connection is strongest when meeting others “in real life,” and so we emphasize in-person events. However, the reality is that online connections are essential as well, and we continue our programming in the virtual world through online game nights, talks and educational panels, and ongoing chats within our Discord community.

Are you local to Massachusetts and passionate about supporting veterans? We are always looking for volunteers. You can learn more at www.frostcall.org/volunteer.