New Jersey diner helps veterans with PTSD

Wrightstown, NJ (WTXF) - Trading war stories over breakfast. It's a common occurrence in a military town. The eggs and home fries are side dishes to the main course, but not all the stories shared are full of glory.

FOX 29's Joyce Evans sat in with a group working to heal the pain they share.

The Garden State Diner is a popular eatery in Wrightstown, New Jersey. However, on Mondays they're serving nourishment to the body and so much more.

Saluting the country out loud, silently remembering those lost defending her abroad and here at home on a solemn anniversary. They don't forget comrades still in harm's way on foreign soil as well as our protectors and responders on city streets. Then it's time to find out how every military veteran in the room feels.

A little levity is sprinkled throughout some serious testimonies about the emotional battle scars so many of these retired and disabled warriors have been carrying from World War II, to Vietnam, to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Some are scarred by multiple conflicts abroad and at home.

Purple Heart recipient Vietnam vet Army Sgt. Jim Dixon says they've grown from a handful to 214 members.