When California native and Marine Corps veteran Justin "Goose" Snodgrass survived his second attempted suicide, he knew there had to be a reason he was still here.
Snodgrass, a podcast host with Warrior Outdoors Entertainment - a network with a still growing list of programs - has been, in his words, trying to figure out how to make an impact for five years. His podcast has grown from a humble radio show to including video and has now expanded to a network of six shows and counting, all of which he's done for free on a volunteer basis.
The reason for the growing project, he said, was to give people a bit of a break from the every day news. Especially given the circumstances of this year and the ongoing pandemic, Snodgrass said he and his team, co-host Richie "Redneck Pimp" King and tech producer Carl "The Wizard of Odd" Albertson, wanted to use their form of entertainment to shift the focus back to important issues that haven't been getting near as much limelight lately.
"One thing that I've learned in the past five years, between doing my podcast, doing the stage shows that I do and everything like that, is everybody is impacted by suicide and everybody is impacted by veterans," Snodgrass said. "I don't think I know a single person who doesn't know a veteran, and if they don't, the moment they meet me, they now know a veteran."
The epidemic of suicide among veterans is a persistent and growing issue that Snodgrass and his team try to combat through their work, whether it be through their humorous interactions or by putting out their personal cell phone numbers so veterans who are struggling with PTSD can reach out and talk to someone who understands. But the group decided it wanted to do something to make an even larger impact.
So Snodgrass decided the team would set a world record, making sure that it would be something everyone could be equally involved in and could serve as a vehicle to keep the focus on the cause. After some Google searching, he knew what they'd be attempting. The record for longest uninterrupted video livestream, according to Guinness World Records, is 161 hours, 11 minutes and 32 seconds long. Snodgrass and the Warrior Outdoors team intend to shatter that record and then some, aiming for a goal of 180 consecutive hours - eight days straight - of livestreaming.
With the attempt starting on Oct. 31 at 8 a.m. and ending on Nov. 7 during Warrior Fest in Blue Springs, an annual two-day fundraiser show for Warrior Outdoors, the stream is set to be live for at least the group's target time. However, Snodgrass said the plan is to keep the cameras rolling through the duration of Warrior Fest, potentially bringing the stream run time to even loftier heights.
The number of hours targeted as their goal, Snodgrass said, is symbolic.
"At 22 a day, that comes out to just over 180 veterans that will lose their lives to suicide (during the stream run time)," Snodgrass said. "That's why we're pushing this 180. Not to mention, what do they call it when you do a complete direction change in life? You did a 180. So it's kind of one of those things where we're not doing a direction change, but we're hoping that at least one person that sees this and sees our message will do a 180 and go away from becoming a statistic."
On just the first day of its run time, the stream will bounce around the globe, taking viewers first to a Scotland castle on Oct. 31 for a paranormal investigation. The same night, the stream will go to London for another investigation, then back home to Cameron, Missouri to round out a trio of paranormal experiences in line with the Halloween holiday.
Later segments will vary widely, from cooking shows to playing video games to behind-the-scenes looks at the group traveling to Warrior Fest, with people around the country and world also lending a hand - more than 50 others will be involved, Snodgrass said.
"There's literally going to be something for everybody on this thing, whether you like to cook, maybe you like to study up about the paranormal, current events, listening to two Marines trying to make sense out of the world, you name it," Snodgrass said.
Despite all the logistics, the planning process has been quicker than one might expect, resulting from an impromptu comedy show live stream thrown together earlier this year as a product of the pandemic. Snodgrass said the group has been planning the record attempt for just three months.
The stream will go live on a pair of platforms - Periscope, via Twitter, and on Twitch - for the entire run time, and on every other platform where Warrior Outdoors Entertainment can be found at the very beginning of the stream. On Twitter, Warrior Outdoors Entertainment can be found at WOEntertainmen1 and on Twitch, at WOEntertainment. Snodgrass said the group also hopes to have some sort of segment schedule and a list of platforms where spectators can find the stream posted on its Facebook page, which can be found at WO Entertainment, in the days before the attempt goes live.
The current network was born out of the Warrior Outdoors Radio Show. Snodgrass is the president of Warrior Outdoors' Missouri chapter and now calls Cameron home, with the overarching nonprofit organization based out of Jefferson, Georgia. The organization takes veterans and first responders on outdoor excursions, from hunting and fishing to monster truck shows, all to help cope with PTSD and stop veteran suicide. A veteran crossbow hunt is one event set to feature on the live stream attempt, tying into the nonprofit's typical work.
"It's going to be one hell of a show - the biggest show I've ever done," Snodgrass said.
With the start of the record attempt just a few days away, Snodgrass said he's feeling positive.
"I'm apprehensively optimistic," Snodgrass said. "Personally, in life in general, I approach everything with cautious optimism. And I mean everythingMy fiance thinks I've lost my mind, my mother thinks I've lost my mind, everybody thinks that I've lost my ever-loving mind on this thing. And I'm surprised I haven't said it yet, but we as a team don't know if we're just that passionate or we're that insane. I think it's more we're insanely passionate, to be honest."
With his small-town roots in California, Snodgrass said he would never have expected to end up where he is today, essentially on the world's stage. His current career was foreshadowed in California, though, as his first job was at KREL - now known as KRLL. He credited former station owner Jeff Shackleford with giving him a chance to do something he fell in love with.
"I've got the deep voice that everybody expects out of a radio personality, and I'd always thought 'I'd love to do this,'" Snodgrass said. "But not just do it, do it to make an impact and be able to help people. That's really what WO Entertainment came from."
Snodgrass joined the Marine Corps right out of high school in 2002, but has been able to reconnect and keep up with his friends and family who remain in the area via social media. He said though life took him in a different direction, California will always be his home.
With that in mind, Snodgrass said he has to give credit to his hometown, and to everybody who's been instrumental in his life, for where he is today.
"To the folks at Lebanon Baptist Church in McGirk, all of my family, all of my friends who have always pushed me to achieve my dreams and dream big, thank you. From the bottom of my heart," Snodgrass said. "I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for them and the good lord above keeping me here. I've always tried to figure out what my purpose is and why I survived suicide twice, and I think finally I'm figuring out why I'm still here. That's to bring joy to people."
Warrior Outdoors Entertainment's regular weekly live show runs every Tuesday at 5 p.m. - the show Nov. 5 will be the last of the year, as the group will go off-air for the holidays and to plan for the next year before returning in January. For more information about Warrior Outdoors, visit warrioroutdoors.org.