Healing Veterans Through Beekeeping feat. Steve Jimenez ’22

[00:00]Intro: Welcome to Owl Have You Know, a podcast from Rice Business. This episode is part of our Pivot Series, where guests share stories of transformation in their lives and careers.

Marine Corps veteran and Rice MBA graduate, Steve Jimenez, never expected to find himself in the world of nonprofits. The entrepreneur tells us his poignant story of serving our country and returning home from active duty with internal wounds hidden from sight to a world in which he was struggling to find inner peace. His battle with post-traumatic stress disorder led him on an unlikely path of healing and, also, recognizing his new mission in life, was to help others like him. Founded in 2018, Hives for Heroes provides a healthy transition back to civilian life through the art of beekeeping, while cultivating a strong sense of belonging and lifelong friendships.

Steve, thank you so much for being on Owl Have You Know.

[01:01]Steve: Thank you so much for having me and having us represent Hives for Heroes today. Just wonderful to see all the successes that you've had, so congratulations, and congratulations to the show.

[01:11]Maya: Well, no, congratulations to you. You have had such a unique and unconventional journey. And I've really been looking forward to talking with you. We were actually at Rice at the same time, both graduated in 2022, but never had an opportunity to meet. When I had heard about what you had launched back in 2018, Hives for Heroes, it really resonated with me in a lot of different ways. And I was very much looking forward to getting to know you and to learn about how much good you've really done in your young life, I mean, you're just really starting out. Native Houstonian, graduated from A&M in 2006, and went to go join the Marine Corps.

Before we jump into this incredible organization, this nonprofit that serves so many people and does so much good, let's start from 2006. So, you went to A&M, and what did you study?

[02:07]Steve: I studied sociology. To be honest, it was a weird transition because a lot of my era understands 9/11 and was there when that happened in high school. And my parents were very adamant to go get an education and not just join the Marine Corps as enlisted personnel. And so, I went to A&M and studied engineering.

And then they told me it was going to take a year longer because I couldn't get a class in. And I was like, “Absolutely not.” The advisor, I said, "How do I get out of here?" And they're like, "You can do a liberal arts degree." So, I have a BS in sociology, and it's actually very good. It's helped me a lot in what we do. It's God's plan, His timing. And it's so cool that, when I'm going through certain things, I think they're challenges, they're really just preparing us for the future.

[02:52]Maya: Yeah. Then, what propelled you to join the Marine Corps? Do you come from a family of people that served in the military?

[03:01]Steve: I had a bunch of buddies that I went to school with at our school in high school, they just went to the Marine Corps. Of course, all the branches are incredible. We serve every branch, and we love them. It's all brothers and sisters in arms. And we serve each other still today, but just the camaraderie, kind of, the best of the best mentality, serving others in such a forward way, and also, leading from the front is something that really, it was an advantage to me. I love leading. I love being out in front, being able to push the envelope, inspire, and try to innovate things, right? This beekeeping world that we'll get into is pretty traditional. And we love being able to push the envelope just a little bit to better serve those that are actually doing the work inside of the organization. 

[03:47]Maya: And tell me about your training and your deployment and the tours in which you served.

[03:51]Steve: Yes. So, I joined in ‘06, graduated from Quantico, and then was immediately going through courses. So, we have OCS, TBS, comm school.

[04:01]Maya: Wait, wait, back up. What are all those things, for those of us that don't know?

[04:05]Steve: OCS is Officer Candidate School. So, after graduation, I went to Officer Candidate School in Quantico, Virginia. That's a 10-week program where you graduate and commission as an officer in the United States Marine Corps. And then I went to the basic school, which is a six-month program, still there in Quantico, that teaches you, literally, everything you need to know about being a Marine Corps officer.

There's a saying in the Marine Corps that every Marine is a rifleman and every Marine officer is a rifle platoon commander. So, you have to know how to employ your resources, which are the troops and the weapons, and literally, your brothers and sisters. And we got very, very close. And that was a wonderful part of my life, of being shoulder to shoulder with some of the best people on the planet, doing some of the best work on the planet.

After that, I went to comm school, which is communication school, that was in Quantico as well. So, I spent a lot of time there. Some people go other places to do their training. And that was another six months. So, now, you're, you know, a year plus in to the Marine Corps, graduated from that course, and was stationed out in Miramar, which is in San Diego, which is beautiful, San Diego.

[05:10]Maya: Beautiful, yes.

[05:12]Steve: Which I still absolutely love. And if it wasn't so expensive, I'd be staying there because the weather is perfect all the time. Went to Miramar to MAG-11, MAG-16, and was the EKMS officer there as well. So, a lot of very nerdy communication stuff. I'm going to talk across the planet, right? That's essentially what we were doing.

And then I ended up doing an individual augment to 15th MEU, which is the Marine Expeditionary Unit Special Operations Command, and we deployed to 17 countries throughout our eight months that we were deployed, and did a lot of kinetic operations, humanitarian assistance, piracy operations. We were literally all over the world, again, doing some of the best things that you could possibly do, serving others in capacities that a lot of military units would not be able to do, and transitioning a lot. So, there's all these massive shifts, and you have to be very agile. And our Marines are top-notch, I mean, extremely professional.

[06:10]Maya: Without a doubt.

[06:11]Steve: Easy to make things happen when you have such amazing people in an organization like the Marine Corps. Came out, and then I went to my first real job.

[06:21]Maya: So, you were in the Marine Corps from 2006 to 2011.

[06:26]Steve: Yes, ma'am. And then I went to Eaton, which Eaton bought us out, but it was Cooper Power Systems at the time. And just had a wonderful time there as well. This is all really just centered around people, really good people doing good things, trying to make the world just a little bit better of a place in the spot in which you're in, right? So, at that time, it was manufacturing.

[06:49]Maya: So, in 2011, when you came back and were trying to reintegrate into civilian life, you come back and then you just apply for a job? How does that work?

[07:01]Steve: I didn't apply for a job. They had these things back then called headhunters.

[07:06]Maya: Oh, those guys, okay.

[07:08]Steve: Because I had no idea how to navigate that, to be able to go from an institution, right, a premier institution that you are told what to do, you have your uniform, where you eat, you know, where you live, everything is prescribed for you on most bases, right? This is a hierarchical structure of things that need to get done on a mission and goal basis. So, it's very structured. There's an adage that says that military personnel have about 300 decisions that they make per day. And the moment they get out of the Marine Corps or the military, in general, they have 3,000 decisions they have to make.

Even so much as to go to the Walmart aisle and get your toothpaste, that is a massive difference. You're like, “Wait, what? There's 300 different toothpastes? I thought there was one.” You know, there's these things that you don't have to do, and, in the capacity of growth, you really have to grow from. And how that happens, for me at least, was through mentorship and allowing others to step into my life that have been there and been able to share their successes. And that's why we do what we do. We do the similar stuff. We mentor through and grow.

[08:23]Maya: Trying to reintegrate back into civilian life. And now, you have a career and you have to go figure out what toothpaste to get. And I mean, these are… they seem simple, but for five years of your life, it’s a very different perspective. Once you got back and were reintegrating back into civilian life, what did you notice that was the most challenging for you?

[08:50]Steve: Challenges were more of my personal life. I would say that I had an immense amount of gratitude for the opportunity to serve our country. And I truly thank those that have and are currently doing so as well. There's the adage of “Thank you for your service,” and a lot of military personnel get uncomfortable and they don't, they don't know what to say back. The reality is you don't have to say anything. And so, thank you to all those that are out there that have, that continue to do so, and probably will in the future. I highly encourage it.

But the trouble was personally, the personal traumas that had, kind of, reared their ugly head, even from childhood, now that I know that. There's a lot of healing in bees. And so, there's a lot of questions about this healing when you start working with bees or anything that gets you into a healing methodology. And so, the struggle was me. The struggle was the things that I was doing, the things that I was running from, and what I ran to, which was a lot of disconnection. So, now that we are in a disconnected state, we're not actually feeling and thinking and living a purposeful life.

And so, that was the hardest part for me, was the personal struggle transitioning back. When it came to professional life, still a Marine. We're going to go succeed and we're going to get the job done.

[10:07]Maya: That's right. So, what was, really, the catalyst that brought you to honeybees and to starting and launching this nonprofit organization? Hives for Heroes was launched in 2018. So, in those seven years, what were you up to?

[10:23]Steve: Oh, Hives for Heroes 2018 was not Hives for Heroes that we have today. Back then, there was a massive struggle with myself and around 30 years old plus when I, basically, financially retired. So, I was sitting here going, what do I do? And so, I had no goals left. So, this is one of those things where they're teaching points and lessons that I've learned from my mentors that I'd love to share, which is have goals. You have to have goals. If you're not moving forward in your goals, you're really not enjoying life the way you could or shining your light the way that you can for others so they can have goals as well.

So, I was pretty stagnant. And in that place, I had massive depression, which I'm sure a lot of people struggle with, especially nowadays. And I just really didn't know why I was here, what I was supposed to be doing, because I had “accomplished” so much, right? All my goals were complete. So, when I started turning that externally was when a friend invited me to a beekeeping event that I did not want to go to.

[11:25]Maya: What year was this?

[11:26]Steve: This was about May, in May of ’18. And she invited me to an event. She's an Air Force veteran, and I did not want to go, but I cared about the relationship enough to step out for her, if that makes sense.

And so, we went out and did that, and it shifted my perspective of life. So, I'm grateful for her. I'm grateful for all those that were with us in the start of this organization, because it shifted my energy. Stay with me for a second. So, when I walked in – into an environment that I felt a high level of anxiety, I still had a lot of hypervigilism from PTS, you know, still today.

And as you're walking into an unknown environment, clearly not knowing what is going to go on, what is going to happen, what is the effect of this, and you're suiting up into a bee suit, and it started feeling very familiar. We walked up to a roof on a, on a yoga studio out in Spring Branch, and we started opening up the hives and it turned into a little bit of chaos, right? So, these bees are coming out there. These ladies are coming out, and they're like, “Who are you? What are you doing opening up my home?”

[12:40]Maya: Because honeybees are female, right?

[12:43]Steve: 99.9% of them are female, right. You have your queen bee, then you have a ton of worker bees, and then you have your drones. And so, these ladies are coming out and the ladies are the ones who have stingers, right? Drones don't have stingers.

[12:55]Maya: Good to know.

[12:56]Steve: Yes.

[12:57]Maya: Now, I know.

[12:58]Steve: So, they're coming out, and I'm like, “Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh, this is the first experience I've had.” But when I started focusing into the beehive, this experience caused me to really remove every external thing that I was thinking about. Anything that was going on at the house, anything with my kids, anything that was going on externally was gone.

[13:21]Maya: But it was very similar to how, when you were serving in the Marine Corps, right?

[13:26]Steve: Yes, yes.

[13:26]Maya: Everything else is gone. You're laser-focused on one thing.

[13:30]Steve: Yes, ma'am. You have this, what we now call chaos to calmness. So, this was the first time in almost 10 years that I actually felt peace, like, I felt calm in my spirit, in my soul, in my brain, however you want to describe it. Everybody has their ways of describing. And then we would follow this process, that then found success, that then built confidence. So, all of a sudden, you're looking at it in a perspective of these metaphors of military. A lot of people that have kicked in doors or done some heavy training or combat can understand or relate to this, is you trust yourself, your gear, and your buddies. You walk into an unknown environment, follow a process, find success, and build confidence. So, all of this happened in, like, five minutes.

[14:25]Maya: Which is what your training is about. And when you come back, it's missing, right? And so, this is a way to really find that, it's comfort.

[14:39]Steve: Yeah, it's an opportunity for us to get together again. So, we get back to the connection side. We speak about our core values very, very often — connection, purpose, relationships, and service. And so, this is an opportunity for, if you know anything about beekeeping, great. If you don't know anything, we got you. It's the opportunity to connect again and to connect to somebody that has a similar experience. Just because you're in different branches, that doesn't matter. You still signed a line on a check. And that check was your life. Like, that's huge to understand that and for our civilian population to understand it, honor and respect that, is awesome. We don't expect it, though. It's great when it's appreciated, but we don't expect it because we're going to do what we're going to do anyway. We're going to go lead and we're going to make the world a better place with the skills in which we have.

[15:29]Maya: So, you went to this event with your friend and…life-changing, obviously. So, you recognized that you have to bring this to others, to other veterans. I'm not one, obviously. But it seems that there is this journey and this camaraderie and, also, this shared experience of missing something once you come back, right?

So, you recognize that this is something that people are missing that have gone through the unfathomable and seeing things that nobody should ever see, you know, those sorts of life-altering experiences. And so, in that moment, you realized, “I need to do this. I need to do this for others.” So, walk me through that.

[16:16]Steve: I wish I just decided to do so and there was this massive plan. For all the entrepreneurs out there that think you have a plan, we never thought that the organization would have the reach and impact that it does today. I think our most important number has always been one. One, meaning to serve one person in a capacity that changes their life. And we can do that, whether that's a beekeeping experience or even a conversation. When you are around people that genuinely care about you and your successes but want nothing from you, it's a pretty powerful position to be in, especially when you feel alone.

So, what our organization has been able to do is connect individuals to individuals in their local areas. So, we call it hyperlocal global impact, because that's what we do. I don't even know a lot of the people in our organization now. I used to call every single one on the phone. We would have a Zoom call. We would match the mentor and the newbie. It was beautiful. That was my favorite part.

[17:25]Maya: That's leadership, though. That's leadership right there, right?

[17:29]Steve: Cost to leadership. And in, and in my case, it is not being able to shake everybody's hand and look them in the eye and say, “Thank you.” That's the cost of leadership in this. Although, it allows other people the opportunity to step up as leaders, and they have in droves. We have state leaders all across the United States that are served, as well, with state representatives, that continue to serve the organization. But most importantly, they serve that individual veteran that might not have been seen or heard. And they're right there, boots on the ground.

[18:05]Maya: So, tell me about those relationships. Tell me about some of the people that you know whose lives have been changed by Hives for Heroes.

[18:14]Steve: Gosh, there is now thousands. We're over 7,000 people throughout the United States. A little update on that first number is now we're over 150,000 hives throughout the United States.

[18:24]Maya: Wow.

[18:25]Steve: This growth comes from, literally, caring about each other. And so, it's really a blessing to have such a word-of-mouth organization where people trust us and then share that to their loved ones, families, and friends. People in the organization, I could literally go on for days. I'm going to, I want to share two stories. And they're from, kind of, almost rags to riches, they're unbelievable. We have one person, his name is Ron, and he is in Indiana. And Ron had addiction issues, as many of us have, especially returning. It's not just a military issue, either, right? This is a national issue that we have.

[19:04]Maya: Global, really.

[19:05]Steve: Yeah, global. Absolutely. I agree. So, he comes in to the organization pretty early on. He's probably been around four years at this point. And he was, he was struggling. And so, at that point, as I mentioned, we were able to talk to every single veteran, which was incredible. And he was having a hard time, a very hard time, he has a spouse and children, in between jobs. And as we were working with him, he had the opportunity to meet his mentor, which, his name is Bill.

And if you know anything about some of our older veterans and first responders, because we do serve first responders as well, sometimes they can be very straightforward. There's no real beat-around-the-bush type with Mr. Bill. And so, Bill said, “Do you want to learn?” And he's in Indiana, mind you. So, I've never met him in person. And he goes, “You want to learn beekeeping? Let's go.” And they started doing rescues and removals immediately, which is how we started funding the organization in 2018 and ’19, was we were out doing rescues and removals for a community. He loved it. He loved the adrenaline. He loved being out there. He loved fulfilling a purpose. He loved being able to meet somebody and then serve the community, which is literally our core values.

Before you knew it, after one year of being in Hives for Heroes with a mentor, he had 64 hives. He now runs a company called ARK Hive Apiary in Indiana, outside of Indianapolis, just got a new house with his family and has been off of any kind of drugs, alcohol for now almost three years.

[20:44]Maya: What a story.

[20:45]Steve: So, you're sitting here looking at how you can literally shift somebody's perspective, which one of my other buddies says, from these little bugs in a box. My buddy, Greg, in Ohio, he's like, “Well, how do these bugs in a box do so much for us?” So, it's hard, very hard, especially in our organization, to take credit for anything because there's these choices that are made. We have the privilege to provide opportunity. And then those that put in the effort and go out and do this, it's their win. It's what they get to do. And then we're very happy whenever they still wear a Hives for Heroes shirt or mention that in the news media or do things like that. We're grateful for that, but that was never the intent. The intent was to serve that one.

So, Hives for Heroes is operated like a hive, if you hadn't noticed that yet. It is pooling in resources, doing things together, and then the output is better than the sum, right? So, 1 plus 1 is 3 in Hives for Heroes. I was going to mention as well, Derek, who's here, actually, in Houston. He was a reservist and was removed from the military during the COVID piece. And so, this gentleman was also in a very, very tough place. Found Hives for Heroes. And I will never forget the Facebook message that came in. And he literally said, “Hives for Heroes saved my life.” And now, we get to be friends. Now, he's down the road, and he's happy, and he's going to school, and he's going and serving the community, doing things inside the beekeeping world. And it's just incredible to see the transition when you have natural healing, right? This wasn't Steve or a mentor or somebody else, it was somebody giving just a little bit. We call it GAS. Just give a shit, just that much. And then, all of a sudden, their life changes for the better because they wanted it to. They just needed a little bit of support, and that's what we want to be, is that bit of support.

[22:33]Maya: And to provide those deeper connections and to finding purpose and to processing trauma and all of those things, that this is really an outlet for that. So, how, if somebody is interested, you know, that's a veteran, how do you become a part of Hives for Heroes? And what's the training for that?

[22:54]Steve: Yeah. We've made it extremely simple. So, whether you're a newbie or mentor, a newbie being a veteran or first responder that has little to no beekeeping experience, you go to the website, hivesforheroes.org, and you fill out a newbie form. Super easy. We got the rest of it on the back end. And then, as a mentor, we ask, you don't have to be a military personnel. We love civilians in the organization, because this is about transitioning into our lives, right? You're not in the military anymore. I used to call myself Steve the Marine. Now, I'm Steve that was in the Marines. There's a very different shift there that I love. Like, I am now more so a father than a Marine. That's who I am, right? I care about my kids more than the Marine Corps at this point in my life. Doesn't mean I don't honor that service. It just means that I've moved forward.

And that's a lot of growth for me, personally. I know we tend to put our identities into things. You get to choose that. So, I choose to put that into my fatherhood or being a public servant, that we're able to serve the general public in really amazing ways, leading what I consider one of the best organizations on the planet. Those are the types of things that when you take your identity and allow yourself to create your identity and your path and your journey, it's a super powerful experience.

So, what we do with them is the mentors will just go to the website as well at hivesforheroes.org, and we ask for you to have three or more years of experience. For you beekeepers out there, the reason for that is because we want to know that you've been able to overwinter twice. So, you're going through at least two full overwinters, which gives, what we believe is the practical skills in order to serve somebody well. But we also make sure that you know that you don't have to be perfect, right? You don't have to be a doctor. You don't have to, you know, have, you know, 1,000 hives.

We're talking about – this is building relationships that matter in your community. We match people within 30 miles of each other so that they can actually see each other. They schedule their own time. We do not micromanage. So, the benefit of that is you just get to have a friend, right? You just get to have a friend in your area that likes the same stuff that you do.

And then, on our end, what we're going to do is be your backstop. We're going to work through any kind of resources that are necessary, whether that's mental health resources, financial health resources, and then we're going to train, equip, and empower those veterans and first responders to do what they want to do. We have thousands upon thousands of resources and collaborations all across the United States. And those are directly connected to the veterans and first responders. They have direct access to those.

[25:40]Maya: Because you have dedicated your life and yourself to, really, public service in so many different ways, you also have won quite a few awards, the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award from the President of the United States. And also, the Future Texas Legend Award, and you're also Houston's 40 Under 40 from the Houston Business Journal.

So, tell me about that. I know that you're a fairly understated person, and I know that you don't do this for the awards and the recognition, but what does it feel like to have really created something so powerful and so unique and to really, I mean, gosh, you've definitely benefited society in so many different ways? But what was that experience like?

[26:24]Steve: Well, I very much appreciate that. Yes, we are a “we” organization. So, all those accolades go directly to all those that have poured into me over the years, whether that was a drill instructor or SART instructor, my parents, my kids, any professors. I mean, we can go on at Rice about this, too, because I still go back.

I think that awards are great, as we're utilizing the recognition for the greater good, if that makes sense. So, we… yeah, we don't post a lot about the awards. I think it's great recognition. I think it's validation for the things that we're doing. At the same time, I think we can still be doing better. And we're still… it's still the push. Again, it's that number one. It's that one veteran that we're not serving right now, the one veteran that we didn't call, the one veteran that doesn't have access to a computer or a phone, you know, that this can be life-changing for them. So, that is our focus.

The accolades are great, and I very much respect those and all those that have received those awards previously. The Texas Business Hall of Fame is a fantastic organization that we are in the executive leadership group now, through them. And they are just wonderful resources, wonderful people. I can't thank them enough for the support in which they provided Hives for Heroes and now Heroes Honey, which is our honey line that has just been released. And the 40 under 40, that was completely unexpected. That was pretty cool. And then, the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award is something that is special in a lot of ways, not only the person that wrote that up because of the care and love that they took to actually do that, but also, it's, kind of, like, a highest achievement, right? It's one of those things that, how do you, kind of, top that?

So, now, our challenge is to figure out how to top that. How do we continue down this path of service in a way that includes others? So, one of those calls to actions that we have now is we need your support, right? We need Rice's support. We need other people's support, because this organization grew in a mentality of serving each other only. Well, we need external support now because of the growth in which we've had. 50 states, 7,000 people, four volunteers running headquarters, four volunteers. We have 50 state leaders. So, you're looking at a big shift in culture, right? We have to now serve in a capacity that is greater than we, than we ever thought.

[28:47]Maya: Scaling. You have to scale.

[28:49]Steve: Massive scale. So, we're being able to serve building out technologies, but we need support in that. Building out a headquarters here in Houston. We want to make a global headquarters here in Houston. We want this the place to be that every single veteran that ever thinks about going into beekeeping comes to Houston, Texas. This is my home. I love this place. I want them here.

[29:09]Maya: Well, and they should be here. So, tell me, is this why you decided to pursue your MBA?

[29:14]Steve: I wish I had that much forethought. Again, I think the exponential growth is due to the love, care, and support that we have to train, equip, and empower veterans to do really good things. I think it's serendipitous. I actually had another Air Force veteran, who is very close that we do, like, kind of, counseling and therapy work for Texas for Heroes together, which is another great program.

And I was on the board of the organization at that time. And he encouraged me to just not be in the house. Like, go do something and challenge yourself. And clearly, when you ask a Marine to go challenge themselves, they do so. So, he's an EMBA, and he's like, “Go, get your MBA.” And I'm like, “Dude, Rice will never accept me. I'm just a, you know, dumb Marine,” type mentality, right? Self-limiting beliefs.

And so, I ended up going and applying and got accepted. And it was just such an amazing ride, even through COVID, because my focus was making the organization a thriving organization. And I do have to… I got some call-outs, right? So, like, Kyle Judah from Lilie Lab. I was, I was all over that. We had another project called RUTD, and that was the 2021 Napier Rice Launch Challenge. We won the pitch competition with Napier Rice Launch Challenge, and Kyle was a huge portion of that. Hesam and Kyle and the staff that's at the Lilie Lab, they are doing such amazing things at Lilie. I think it's, like, five times number one entrepreneurship program in the country. Like, this little bitty piece that we get to talk about this because there's so many incredible people doing wonderful things. And if you see the projects that are going through Lilie, there are very little that are like, “Let's go just make money.”

[30:59]Maya: It really is serving others. Those are the best kinds of startups, are the ones that you're thinking externally. You're not thinking so much internally. You're like, “What is the pain point? How can I help somebody? What is it that I can do?” And I think that that is also one of the main reasons why Rice is the number one entrepreneurship school in the country, is because it's a very different way of viewing things. And I think that it's very selfless. And the folks that are running the Lilie Lab, you know, that's what the focus is, is, you know, how can we bring people together? What connections can we, you know, recognize that we have together? What is it that we can do to really capitalize on serving our community and serving the world, rather than-

[31:48]Steve: Yourself.

[31:48]Maya: It's not serving yourself. Yes, exactly.

[31:50]Steve: To me, one of those massively inspirational people, and everybody knows this name, he's a legend, Mr. Al Danto.

[31:55]Maya: Oh, of course, Mr. Al Danto.

[31:59]Steve: Come on, we get to go have lunch. And we’re doing an acquisition at one point, and I just texted him. I'm like, “Hey, can we meet up?” And we're already graduated. So, you're able to lean in and tap into the resources of Rice, even, you know, the donor network. We're very grateful as well, already the alumni foundation, for us, brought in Heroes Honey. They had done an event with board advisors or the board of directors there at Rice, which all received Heroes Honey. And then, now, the business school is purchasing as well to be able to give to the incoming MBAs that are going to be joining this wonderful family. So, we're really excited about that. So, Heroes Honey will be coming to, you know, the Rice campus.

[32:42]Maya: Well, so, tell me about Heroes Honey, because I want in on that. I mean, I'm an alum and I want some Heroes Honey. How do you… tell me about that.

[32:49]Steve: Yeah, Heroes Honey is a product based out of the, you know, the successes that we've had at Hives for Heroes and, also, the ability to give back financially but receive a sweet reward. We call it the Sweet Taste of Freedom. And you can get your monthly dose of freedom as a subscription base at HeroesHoney.com, which is awesome. And then all the proceeds go back to Hives for Heroes, so we can perform our programming, and also, our scholarships.

So, we are excited about that. All of it is raw honey. So, we don't do flavors or anything like that. We understand the health benefits. If you look at our YouTube, we had one of the world premier medicinal properties of honey's experts on last week. He's out of UTSA. He's incredible. So, if you want any information on that, you can go to our YouTube @hivesforheroes. Every month, we have a really, really special guest that comes on and does their specialty in whatever it is in beekeeping or pollinators, et cetera. It's really exciting.

But yeah, Heroes Honey is available here in Houston at our headquarters and, also, online, and then soon to be in other special places throughout the United States. So, we'll be in about 100 sites within the coming weeks.

[34:00]Maya: That's the beauty of Rice, you know. I get to meet these phenomenal folks like you that really have made such an impact on our community and on the planet. And it starts with Rice Business. And, you know, the ecosystem that's there, ways that people can contribute to society. And this is one way that has so many different touchpoints. You know, you've got folks in the military. You've got business people. You've got entrepreneurs. You've got innovators. You've got newbies, you know, the little baby MBAs that come in. It's the things that you don't expect.

[34:33]Steve: It's an M-Bee-A, there you go.

[34:36]Maya: M-Bee-A, I love it. I can see, I can see a t-shirt, I can see a t-shirt coming out.

[34:43]Steve: It's so funny. And we have, we also, just in case your viewers want to know, we have a gala coming up September 7th. It is specifically for fundraising. At this point, we're looking for half a million dollars to then start up our capital campaign for our $25 million new headquarters here in Houston, Texas. So, if anybody's interested in that, we would love to talk to you.

[35:04]Maya: September 7th. So, what's next? Because you're… it's a capital campaign to build a headquarters here in Houston. Tell me more about what the future holds for Hives for Heroes.

[35:14]Steve: The future, the future is bright. So, our overall vision is connecting people, nature, and technology to make the world a better place. So, here you have the people side, right? Veterans, first responders, and those that are willing to serve in that capacity. So, we have our people side. We have our purpose side, and the nature side, right? So, we're going to connect you to nature. A lot of healing in nature in and of itself, right? Get outside, get fresh air, get some exercise, move your body. As Brett would say, put your feet in the dirt, like, put your feet on the ground, there's that electromagnetics-type stuff.

There is a lot of healing in bees, but there's also a lot of healing just out of nature. I have a friend that goes and walks and she, like, tries to find where the birds are at and just try to find them. It's like the mindfulness-type techniques, right? But, of course, getting fresh air, getting fresh water, and doing those things for yourself, nature's a massively healing space for that. And then, the beautiful part of technology. Merging these pieces together. We work with Hewlett Packard Enterprises, which is one of our sponsors. We do facial recognition software with bees, believe it or not, which is really, really cool.

[36:23]Maya: Really?

[36:25]Steve: Yes.

[36:25]Maya: Well, no, wait, wait, wait. Facial recognition with bees. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. I can't just, like, gloss over that. What? Facial? Okay, tell me about facial recognition with bees.

[36:34]Steve: Yeah. We put these really cool cameras that are like, I guess they're 4k cameras. And you're able to literally see the bees and the faces and the butts that go in and out. So, it's the first time that we know of in the entire world that you can have an actual bee count and know what is going in and out. Almost every other type to count bees is a laser wall or a fence. So, you just know that the fence is broken. You don't know if they're going in or out. So, in this case you can actually track them, and it's wild. So, if you go to HPE's innovation center, it's the CIC, but it's up here in Spring. And we jokingly say that we're the power behind Formula 1 as well, because our display is behind the Formula 1 race car, which is so cool as well. And in between Formula 1 and NASA is Hives for Heroes at HPE.

So, we do predictive analytics as well. This is something that we think is game-changing because we're utilizing the data inside, putting sensors, heat barometer, microphones, scales, utilizing that data to then predict colony collapse. So, we can know when a queen's going to leave the hive. We know when they're going to swarm. So, now, we can better predict what we need to do to better serve and steward the bees, which also allows us to not have to get into them as much. So, this is, this is high-tech stuff that you probably wouldn't think of from a, from a four-person, you know, headquarter organization in Houston, Texas, you know, volunteering time. But people believe, and they see the advancements that can happen when we understand the smallest of our creatures and merge that with, I don't know, caring in kind, purposeful individuals that are going to go out and do good things. But if we can start predicting these things, I mean, that's massive.

[38:29]Maya: It's fascinating. Well, it could really… the reaches are far and wide, to really understand nature in a way that we've never understood it before.

[38:38]Steve: We work with another organization that we can… we're working on, basically, reporting out the biodiversity and utilizing the bees as the sensors. So, it is… these are conversations that are, that are really quite unique and fun. And it inspires me to keep moving forward. We get to serve veterans every day and work in a capacity to literally, even by data, start making the world a better place, or at least give us the opportunity to make decisions on what things look like. It's fascinating. So, yeah, people, nature, and technology. How do we merge those together? That's what we're doing at Hives for Heroes.

[39:14]Maya: And inspiration. And I will tell you that this conversation has certainly inspired me, and I'm sure that it has… is going to inspire our listeners and our viewers. And I'm just grateful for the opportunity to talk to you and to share your story. And I just want to thank you for telling us about your journey and about Hives for Heroes. And we look forward to that headquarters here in Houston.

[39:37]Steve: We need your help. We need everybody's help.

[39:40]Maya: Everybody's help.

[39:40]Steve: We need everybody's help. This is a city endeavor, I promise you that.

[39:43]Maya: Well, I think you've got some connections at Rice that, maybe, you can use. They'll be listening as well. And I'm sure that Rice would love to be a part of it.

So, Steve, it's been a pleasure. Thank you so much for your time today. And we look forward to the future.

[39:56]Steve: Thank you so much. For any more information, hivesforheroes.org. Thank you so much. And I encourage anybody to go to our socials because there are these stories on there. You will meet the people on the stories that we're talking about. I believe it's inspirational. I get to wake up every day and do this and I'm very grateful. Thank you so much.

[40:14]Maya: Absolutely. Thank you!

Thanks for listening. This has been Owl Have You Know, a production of Rice Business. You can find more information about our guests, hosts, and announcements on our website, business.rice.edu. Please subscribe and leave a rating wherever you find your favorite podcasts. We'd love to hear what you think. The hosts of Owl Have You Know are myself, Maya Pomroy, and Scott Gale.