Veterans Project to Host Conversation in Mount Washington Saturday Night

The Veterans Project, a Los Angeles based nonprofit focused on assisting soldiers as they reintegrate into civilian life, will on Saturday evening host what they hope is the first in a series conversations about war and veterans issues.

The event, which will feature a showing of footage captured by deceased veteran John Needham during one of his tours in Iraq, is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 9, at 7 until 9 p.m. at the home of Robert and Lisa Corsini at 3932 Rome Court in Mount Washington.

Needham, a decorated war veteran originally from Orange County, went through a highly publicized battle with post-war stress after returning home from Iraq. At the time of his death, he was free on bail for charges that he beat his girlfriend to death in 2008.

The conversations series is an initiative of the The Veterans Project's John Needham Media Center, whose mission is to "publish stories about the plight of military veterans and produce content created by veterans," according to The Veterans Project's website.

Corsini, a producer for the Veterans Project, said the footage that will be shown on Saturday evening is controversial, and will hopefully spark a much needed conversation about about veterans issues.

"It's gonna be kind of intense;we don't want to be a downer, but we also want to be real," Corsini said. "People need to interact over these issues, because people are so afraid to talk from the heart about them."

A $20 admission fee will be charged at the door, with proceeds going to benefit the The Veterans Project.