American Hero

BY PATRICK ADAMS

You reach a certain point in life where there is little that will make you nervous.  A lifetime of experiences blunt the fantasy that existed as a child and you see the world, and people for what it is.  But if you’re lucky enough, every once in a while, something brings back that childhood excitement and nervous combination.  A bit queasy, a bit sleepless with a little adrenaline mixed in. 

“Brokos is the poster child of what an “American hero” looks like”

As I prepped for this day, all I kept circling back to was, “What do you ask a true American hero?”  Of course, I want to ask him literally everything!  Just sit back with unlimited time and energy and say, “Tell me EVERYTHING.”  But then he walks in and all of that falls away.  At probably 6’4” and a generous 250 pounds, Dan Brokos is the poster child of what an “American hero” looks like – an imposing figure, all muscle and eyes that look not only through you, but 360 degrees around him.  But his warm and sincere approach is not what you’d expect from someone who has spent 27 years in the U.S. Army, 21 of those in Special Forces fighting some of the nastiest battles of our era. 

What you learn right away is that Dan is a man who is mission driven. Whether it is stories of his childhood, early adulthood or yesterday, he is a man with a passion for service and is driven by a mission of love to this country and those who serve it.  Following his time serving this great country in the U.S. military, he transitioned to his own tactical training company named Lead Faucet Tactical (leadfaucettactical.com) that focuses primarily on equipping our LEO and military communities with the skills they need to combat today’s growing list of complex threats.  And while his experience covers literally more than most Hollywood movies could dream up, his passion in training falls in CQB (close quarters battle) scenarios.  And of course, this is the most technical area of combat to teach and the most dangerous to find yourself in and not coincidently, where our LEO and now more often, even our military find themselves in on a regular basis. 

Time passes in a comfortable, casual flash with Dan and quickly the nerves go away and he feels like someone you’ve known your entire life.  He is driven by all of the same things we all are – love for the country, love for God, love for his family and friends.  He works hard to be a better man and is driven in his determination to help our First Responders get the training and knowledge they so desperately need to combat today’s growing list of complicated threat scenarios.  This is illustrated by his passionate descriptions of the complexities of single man room clearing and center-fed rooms.  These conversations flow easily like “normal guys” talking about last weekend’s football games.  His conceptual understanding of this subject matter is simply PhD level, but his ability to break it down to a simple, logical picture is something I’ve never experienced before and this is what makes Lead Faucet unique. 

“Dan is a man who is mission driven and is driven by a mission of love to this country and those who serve it.”

Whether you subscribe to the current media frenzy that public active shooter situations are an hourly occurrence, or that things really haven’t changed all that much, Dan makes you want to invest in personal training simply to become better equipped to deal with whatever life presents. More than just a lifetime of tactical experience, it is his heart and passion of sharing this experience with others that makes it contagious. His approach is logical, clear and effective at moving the needle with his students. Although the bulk of Lead Faucet’s calendar is reserved for LEO and military training, he does offer a handful of highly demanded “open enrollment” trainings for those mere mortals wishing to better equip themselves with the skills necessary to carry out their own responsibilities of keeping themselves, and their families safe. 

Walking away from time with Dan, you have no choice but to take an inventory of yourself, your life, your decisions, your goals, and perhaps your lack of ambition to see them through as you spent time with a true American hero in every sense of the word.  But like all good heroes, you walk away better for the generosity of his time, leave inspired and perhaps, the feeling that some of his superpowers rubbed off on you and the pursuit of your goals.