Irwin veteran finds balance through martial arts, wants to help other vets

After nine years as a member of the Marine Corps infantry, Jeric Fry of Irwin felt he was fully prepared to enter civilian life when his oldest son was born.

“I got out in 2014, and I kind of assumed I’d be in a good place,” said Fry, 37. “I was married to a veteran, I was ‘the’ Marine and I thought I’d have no problem getting a job. But I really struggled.”

After discovering the martial art discipline of jiu-jitsu, however, Fry was able to find balance in his life and is now looking to help other veterans in a similar way through his nonprofit group, Veteran Bushido Brotherhood.

“I ended up doing all the wrong stuff — drank, got divorced, all of that — and I was working as a barber when I met a jiu-jitsu coach who came in to get his hair cut,” Fry said.

Fry was intrigued by the combat sport, which originated in Brazil and is focused on grappling, ground fighting and submission holds via joint locks or choke holds.

“When I started, I really got my feet under me,” Fry said. “I opened my own barbershop, Straight Ahead in Greensburg, I found my wife, put together a jiu-jitsu event called the Barbershop Throwdown and eventually started a nonprofit.”

Below, watch matches from the 2021 Barbershop Throwdown.

The first four years that Fry held the tournament, he donated the proceeds to the local VA Emergency Relief Fund. But in 2020, he quickly took notice of the effects the covid shutdown was having on fellow veterans.

“Everyone was secluded, and that’s terrible for veterans,” he said. “It really prompted me to try and start a nonprofit that can give people the tools I found that helped change my life.”

The Veteran Bushido Brotherhood attained nonprofit status in 2021 and sponsors veterans by providing a three-month scholarship to start any sort of group fitness regimen, along with the equipment they need. Whether it’s jiu-jitsu, CrossFit or mixed martial arts, Fry said there’s usually a fitness community suited to a veteran’s needs.

“We try to get them into a gym and a community that they understand, where they can develop a bond,” he said. “ ‘Through the struggle we find a family’ is kind of our motto.”

Former Army police officer Andrew Cribbs, 26, of Indiana was struggling mightily, and had become fully disabled after contracting a rare disease during five years serving in the Middle East. He said the Veteran Bushido Brotherhood saved him from a dark time in his life.

“For a long time, I couldn’t get off the couch,” Cribbs said. “I was living on a feeding tube, sick every day. I didn’t have the will to do it anymore. But I started some trial medication and started feeling better, and they helped pay for me to do strength training and get all the gear I needed to get started.”

Fry said veterans understand group fitness — it was part and parcel of their training no matter the branch.

“When you’re in a negative cycle, you really need something to help you make your way out of it,” he said. “I feel like the group fitness can sort of trick them into bettering their lives. If you’re not taking care of yourself, you’re going to have trouble caring for other parts of your life like your family and job. A lot of veterans get depressed and alone, but with the skills they have and the experience, they should be leaders in their communities.”

He said the challenge of a combat discipline like jiu-jitsu can be just the jolt a vet needs.

“I went to my first class, and got held on my back by this little 150-pound guy — I weigh 220 pounds — and I thought, ‘How can he do that to me?’ ” Fry said. “And I kept coming back until no one could ever do that to me again. Going through boot camp, you develop these bonds that are hard to match. Jiu-jitsu is sort of the same way.”

Cribbs — who left the couch in the dust and spoke with TribLive on Wednesday while hiking with his 3-year-old daughter on his shoulders — agreed.

“They’ve done nothing but help,” he said. “Everyone is so kind and honest. It kind of changes your life. I found myself struggling a lot mentally, physically, everything, when I got out of the Army. And meeting these guys really helped ground me and set me up for success.”

Fry and other members of Veteran Bushido Brotherhood are hoping to reach out to more veterans at the Pittsburgh Sports Expo, taking place Saturday and Sunday, April 20-21, at the All American+ Field House at 1 Racquet Lane in Monroeville.

Fry is also the fitness director at the field house, and Veteran Bushido Brotherhood will be among a wide variety of organizations offering health and wellness services to the public.

In addition to a booth, the group is also hosting a “Veteran Bushido Superfight” from 4-7 p.m. Saturday, April 20, at the expo.

For more information, including expo tickets, see PGHSportsExpo.com. For more information on Veteran Bushido Brotherhood, see VetBushido.org.