Mark “Oz” Geist is a member of the Annex Security Team that fought the Battle of Benghazi, Libya, from September 11 to September 12, 2012. A Colorado native, Mr. Geist joined the United States Marine Corps in 1984. During his time in the service, he served in Barracks Duty in the Philippines, then with the 2nd Battalion 9th Marines Golf Company, as well as the Surveillance and Target Acquisition Platoon. He then was chosen to serve in the newly formed Marine Cadre program as an Anti-/Counter- Terrorism Instructor. Upon the completion of a very successful tour and re-enlistment, Mr. Geist changed his military occupational specialty to the Intelligence field, specializing in Interrogation Translation. He attended language school where he studied Persian Farsi.
After serving 12 years in the United States Maine Corps, Mr. Geist became a Deputy Sheriff in Teller County, Colorado. In that role, he was assigned as liaison with the Vice Narcotics and Intelligence Unit in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as well as an Investigator for Crimes against Children. Certified as a Forensic Interviewer of children, he investigated numerous case of abuse in which he helped to secure convictions of the perpetrators. He then took a job as Chief of Police in Fowler, Colorado. After leaving the Fowler Police Department, Mr. Geist began his own business in private investigations as well as bounty hunting and bail bonds.
In 2004, Mr. Geist began doing contract security work in Iraq. He worked for Triple Canopy, providing Personal Security Details for Department of State personnel in Baquba, Iraq. Upon the completion of that contract he worked for USIS, the United States Investigative Services, training Iraqi SWAT teams and Personal Security Details. He also served as a mentor/advisor to the Personal Security Detail of Dr. Ayad Allawi, the former Prime Minister of Iraq.
Mr. Geist finished his career as a security contractor in Benghazi, Libya, where he was credited with helping to save the lives of more than 25 Americans. Mr. Geist is still recovering from the injuries he sustained in the battle. He is a co-author of the bestselling book 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi.
Defending Our Children
Defending Our Children is a show dedicated to stopping Child Trafficking. This show segues from Contraland, the documentary created by Veterans For Child Rescue founder, Craig “Sawman” Sawyer. Its sole purpose is to alert the populace of the human trafficking of children which is the single greatest threat to our way of life. It is an estimated $38-$50 billion industry, which is greater than the NBA, NFL, and MLB combined. Society believes that this industry is real however that it exists outside our borders. When in fact this problem is prevalent in every corner of the United States.
We need to challenge our educational system, our justice system, our local, state, and federal government. In recent times we have been taught to view that our greatest threat to society was terrorism, however Child Trafficking has a much more devastating impact because our children will be the future leaders of our way of life. We as a society have to do everything we can to protect our species starting with our children. This evil impacts every single person in the United States as well as worldwide.
Meet the Hosts
Craig grew up near Houston, Texas and got his tactical start in the U.S. Marine Corps. He quickly transitioned to the U.S. Navy to pursue high-level Special Operations as a U.S. Navy SEAL. He served in SEAL Team One, then went on to the Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU), then in the Federal Air Marshal Service as an Agent and Supervisor. After 5 years in Federal Law Enforcement, Craig served in High-Threat Mobile Security contracting, Film & Television Tech Advising, and Personal Security Training for the public.
As a DEVGRU Operator, Craig gained critical combat experience in Desert Shield and Desert Storm resulting in decoration for “Heroic Service.”
Those operations included:
- The capturing of the very first prisoners of the war
- CSAR (Combat Search And Rescue) Operations
- Sniper Operations
- Reconnaissance Operations
- Counter-Mine Operations
- FAV (Fast Attack Vehicle) Operations
Throughout his career, Craig gained recognition for his mastery of multiple military and combat disciplines, such as weapons training and shooting, counter-terrorism, surveillance and counter-surveillance, climbing, criminal investigation, parachuting, and hand-to-hand combat.
FOUNDING A NONPROFIT: VETERANS FOR CHILD RESCUE
When a friend and intelligence community veteran told Craig about the severity of child trafficking in America, Craig knew he had to do something.Craig founded Veterans for Child Rescue (V4CR) in April of 2017 with the goals of exposing and eradicating child trafficking in the USA. He made plans to film a documentary that would expose the infrastructure and secrecy behind the industrial scale harm of child trafficking.
Forrest began his career in credit card acquiring in 1989. He was an original member of Retriever Payment Systems – which was a pioneer in the credit card acquiring industry. Forrest was also an original member of the ETA Technology committee where he received the “Committee of the Year” award in 2004.
In his 20+ years at Retriever Payment Systems/National Processing Company, Forrest wore many hats and played part in many versatile roles to help the company grow. He spent the first half of his time there in Operations, where he ran a call center for Technical Support, Merchant Services, and specialty groups for Banking and Major Merchants. For the second half of his time, Forrest spent his time in Business Development. He managed a team that was the liaison to the top 60 resellers. Forrest and his team would provide any services that were needed to bring in a client. This would include going on sales calls, finding products and dealing with underwriting guidelines.
Additionally, Forrest was tasked to go on sales calls for direct business, government, and bank clients. He negotiated contracts and worked with the legal department to resolve any contract issues on existing and future clients.
Additionally, Forrest acquired, managed, built pricing models, did financials, tax preparation, and operations consulting for “Stand Alone” emergency rooms.
Support Us
By donating to Veterans For Child Rescue, you're championing a nationwide effort to shield our children from harm. Every contribution you make not only reinforces our commitment but also fuels our unwavering mission to obliterate child trafficking within the USA. Stand with us; together, we can create a safer future for every child.
Tax ID: 82-1243908
