PiBurner of the Week: Shane Whitecloud
Let’s celebrate our PiBurner of the week:
Shane Whitecloud
owner of
Team Valor
A Story that inspired us
Today, we are honored to feature another truly inspiring person as PiBurner of the Week.
Shane is a man who has overcome much in his life. He is a service-connected disabled Navy veteran (which means that he was injured while in active military duty for this country). He is also a father of three boys and the owner of Team Valor, an online shop that sells uniquely crafted items to those who appreciate great design and craftsmanship.
There is nothing like hearing his story in his own words and luckily, Shane had recently given a Ted Talk. From foster home to lead singer, and now business owner, his journey is an epic one. His story is exceptional, terrifying, gripping, and of course, absolutely moving. See and hear it for yourself:
Shane’s Ted Talk
Shane now works as a Public Affairs Officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital – a position he has held for the past two years. He also created a nonprofit 501c3 organization, Veteran Development Group Inc. (opemploy.org) that focuses on assisting Veterans who are going through treatment court with costs tied to their substance rehabilitation, counseling, and substance screening. His organization also assists Veterans with finding and procuring gainful employment.
More about Shane
As you can imagine, Shane is not new to helping Veterans.
Prior to starting his organization, Shane was head of public relations for the Veterans Resource Centers of America for 13 years working with homeless veterans while also being a rock radio personality on the FM station, Rock 104.5 for 23 years.
He even had his own radio show podcast on iTunes, American Warfighter Radio.
He is a Public Speaker and subject matter expert on suicide, substance addictions, homelessness, and military sexual trauma, currently serving on the Sexual Assault and Harassment Prevention workgroup under the Secretary of the VA to help develop litigation to protect staff and Veterans attending any VA facility.
A published author in national magazines and websites, Shane is currently writing his first book titled after his 2021 TED Talk, “The Path to Empathy”.
If that wasn’t enough, there is more!
Shane is also the lead singer/frontman in a rock band called Seasons of Insanity.
He is the proud father of 3 boys ranging from 26 to 4, grandfather of one (but we don’t mention the G-word!)
What motivates Shane
We asked Shane what drives him? What makes him get out of bed and tap dance to work each morning?
Over the past two years, being creative has been my therapy, and being able to make other people happy has been my reward. I also love the idea of building something up from my garage into something bigger that I can one day hand down to my children.
Satisfaction from creating something new is a deeply ingrained human instinct and we find this creativity to be the driving force of many a PiBurner.
Shane’s Shops, YouTube, and Facebook Page
Currently, Shane is doing a lot. He has the equipment and skill to do all of the following: 3D printing, powder coating, sublimation, CO2 laser engraving and cutting (hoping to get a fiber laser soon as well), DTG (direct to garment), DTF (direct to film), screen printing, and at the end of this month he’ll be receiving his 20-needle embroidery machine.
If you have not already, check out his online shop: (which is still new and items are being added as he builds it, so check back often!)
There, you can find customer engraved drinkware like tumblers and bottles and exquisite cutting boards.
Also, subscribe to his YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/shanewhitecloud
Don’t forget to check out his Facebook page, and make sure to “like” it!
https://www.facebook.com/officialwhitecloud
Favorite Projects
Some of Shane’s favorite projects can be found in his shop that is still being built out.
Thanks for being AWESOME, Shane.
It is a true honor to be able to put our PiBurn in the hands of this real American hero. This is what drives us at LensDigital – beyond creating simply great tools – it’s helping people like Shane be successful in their endeavors. What could be more rewarding than to be a part of such an awesome community of makers?!
For us, this is the main reason to keep on PiBurning!
Shane Whitecloud, Thank you!!! For being a hero, an inspiration, and of course a PiBurner!
That’s all for today my friends, and Happy PiBurning!
Stan & Len
PS: Want to be a featured PiBurner yourself? Find out how!
