R3’s Kyle Kirk was honored at the San Diego Business Journal’s 2023 Top 50 Black Leaders of Influence awards ceremony, in association with the Central San Diego Black Chamber of Commerce, on February 28, 2023. Kyle joined R3 in 2018, rising from Instructor to Project and now Program Manager overseeing high-risk training for Special Operations military units. He retired from the Navy after 26 years as a Master Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Technician, serving in the Global War on Terrorism, and making multiple combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Now a Project Management Professional, he mentors transitioning military service members and leads complex Department of Defense contract support programs.

Also in attendance to help celebrate Kyle’s achievement were R3’s Director of Operations and Security, Chris Merwin, and R3’s Human Resources Coordinator, Keanna Spencer. We are thrilled to see Kyle’s commitment and dedication recognized in this public forum across all business sectors in San Diego.

R3 was a proud sponsor of the Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial at its 2022 Veterans Day ceremony. At this year’s ceremony, the legacy of Navajo Code Talkers of WWII was honored with a plaque recognizing their dedication to their country.

During WWII, U.S. forces needed an unbreakable code that would allow them to communicate and protect their operational plans. The U.S. Marines knew exactly where to find such a code: the Navajo Nation. U.S. Marine Corps leadership selected 29 Navajo men, the Navajo Code Talkers, who created a code based on the complex, unwritten Navajo language. The code primarily used word association by assigning a Navajo word to key phrases and military tactics. This system enabled the Code Talkers to translate three lines of English in 20 seconds, not 30 minutes as was common with existing code-breaking machines.

The Code Talkers participated in every major Marine operation in the Pacific theater, giving the Marines a critical advantage throughout the war. During the nearly month-long battle for Iwo Jima, for example, six Navajo Code Talker Marines successfully transmitted more than 800 messages without error. Marine leadership noted after the battle that the Code Talkers were critical to the victory at Iwo Jima. At the end of the war, the Navajo Code remained unbroken.

The Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial is one of the most unique veterans’ memorials in the nation and stands high on La Jolla’s Mt. Soledad, offering panoramic views of San Diego County.  It is the only Memorial that honors veterans, living or deceased. More than 5,800 individual veteran tributes, embedded on black granite plaques, are mounted onto 11 curved walls honoring our military veterans.

R3 is a proud sponsor of the Veterans Exploring Treatment Solutions (VETS) 2nd annual fundraising gala – Common Ground.  VETS’ mission is to end the veteran suicide epidemic by providing resources, research, and advocacy for U.S. military veterans seeking psychedelic-assisted therapies for traumatic brain injury (TBI), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, and other health conditions.  Throughout the year, VETS hosts and participates in a variety of events to raise funds to end veteran suicide.

The Gala to End Veteran Suicide takes place in Coronado, CA on Veterans Day, November 11th, 2022. R3 will join VETS and the U.S. Special Operations Forces community for an inspiring and empowering evening to gather support for the heroes who’ve served and defended our nation.