Big Country Politics: One Veteran’s mission to save others through psychedelics

BIG COUNTRY, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – They fought for our freedom, but many came home to fight another battle, one within themselves. As Veterans across the country continue to heal from the invisible wounds of war, a new form of therapy is gaining attention in the United States: psychedelic-assisted healing.

One man leading that charge is Matthew “Whiz” Buckley, a former Navy fighter pilot and founder of the

No Fallen Heroes Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to ending Veteran and first responder suicide through entheogenic healing.

Buckley’s passion for helping others began from a place of pain. From losing his sister to a drunk driver to surviving sexual abuse, his early life was marked by trauma, and his time in the military only deepened those scars.

“I lost 16 buddies, and then along the way, I’ve lost four F-18 brothers to suicide, and then transitioning out of the military and going to a Wall Street firm was an absolute horror. I left the fighter squadron where you trust the men and women with your life, to a Wall Street firm where I couldn’t trust somebody to watch my wallet for five minutes,” Buckley recalled. “I was spiraling down the drain, drugs, alcohol, and then my last F-18 brother took his own life. He was my best friend. He was a groomsman in my wedding… I looked at my bride, and I said, ‘We’ve got to do something to end Veteran suicide.'”

That turning point led him to explore a controversial but promising avenue: psychedelic-assisted therapy. He joined a group traveling to Mexico to take part in guided sessions using plant-based medicines.

“I’ve done some challenging things in my life. This was, without a doubt, one of the most challenging. It was not fun, it was not recreational, but I got 40 years of therapy in about 14 hours… On this sacrament, there was God, right? The brightest, whitest light, full of love, empathy, compassion, and forgiveness. I fell to my knees. Man, I begged for forgiveness. I’m not the best husband, father, or human; I’m a drunk. But just with a wave of energy, it was gone. He said, Matthew, I got those things. That’s not you. I don’t make imperfect things. I’m going to take that stuff. Rise. Let me show you what you can do,” Buckley recalled. “It was the most incredible moment. Well, marrying my bride and having my three kids all tied for first, but this was with that. This experience put all of that into perspective.”

When he returned home, Buckley founded the No Fallen Heroes Foundation, which now provides grants to Veterans, first responders and their families to receive similar healing treatments.

In May, Buckley was invited to the Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters by Secretary Collins.

“He looked me dead in the eyes, and he said, Whiz, if anybody’s going to do this, it’s going to be us, and it’s going to be now. So that was a very surreal moment. A couple of days around that meeting, he was in a cabinet meeting, and President Trump, I’ve never heard a president use these words, ‘What’s going on with Veteran suicide?’ I about fell out of my chair,” Buckley shared.

Buckley said that despite federal funding, suicide rates among Veterans haven’t improved. He believes psychedelic therapy could be part of the answer.

“Fast forward, a year after that, I’ve started my own and the word church makes my skin crawl just a little bit. I’m a recovering Catholic. I started an entheogenic church called Sacred Warrior Fellowship, based here in Florida. The world would be a much better place if people actually took responsibility for their healing. I’m not joking when I say this: if I could kidnap Vladimir Putin and Zelensky and take them on a retreat, the war would be over. That’s not a joke. It’s not hyperbole. It’s a fact,” Buckley added.

He’s also frustrated by what he calls a broken system, one that discourages Veterans from seeking alternative treatments.

“That’s all he [a congressman] cared about, the money. So if we heal these Veterans, we don’t have to pay them their disability. I’m like, Are you kidding me? This guy suffered 10 years of PTSD. We got him something that came out of Mother Earth that healed him, and you’re going to stop paying him his disability,” Buckely questioned. “You want to see the suicide numbers jump even more? What a disgrace. How about you call it? It’s not a disability payment anymore. It’s a thank-you payment. It’s an I’m sorry we sent you to war payment.”

To Buckley, the power of psychedelic therapy goes far beyond science; it’s divine. He believes these experiences can strip away ego and bring people face-to-face with something greater than themselves.

“Ain’t nobody been on one of our retreats who said they experienced satan or evil or anything like that. Absolutely not. Those are stale old talking points. I’m living truth that these have the power to dissolve ego and reconnect us with God,” Buckley shared. “What does ego stand for? Edge God out. That ego doesn’t get any more ego than a Navy fighter pilot, and when that dissolved, I got to see that God is there. He never left. He has always been and always will be. It saved and changed my life.”

Click here to learn more about the No Fallen Heroes Foundation.