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"Former special operators have unique experiences and skills," explains Dominique Plewes, chair of the Special Operations Forces Support Foundation. "ese individuals have worked in multiple countries with our partner forces, interacting with officials at the highest levels." At the same time, as Plewes notes, many congressional staffers are in their twenties or thirties. "ey don't have that kind of experience so when they are briefing a senator or congressman, they're often just repeating what they read on the internet or in a white paper from a think tank." Plewes, who lives in Rancho Santa Fe, has been involved with the special operator community for more than a decade, and founded the Special Operation Forces Support Foundation in 2017, along with Jeffrey Strauss, owner of Pamplemousse Grille, and a few others who prefer to remain anonymous. e organization's initial focus was providing emergency support and privatized mental health care to SOF members and their families. "But we kept seeing these veterans returning from deployment, and we kept treating them and their families for the same issues — issues that arise from 20 years of war," says Plewes. "I wanted to do more than treat the symptoms. I wanted to better understand the root causes of the conflicts." Plewes has travelled to Jordan, Syria, and Iraq multiple times. She has also been to Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ukraine, and Indonesia. During these visits, Plewes has had the opportunity to meet with numerous special operators, becoming acutely aware that their "on-the-ground perspective" often differed dramatically from that of those who work on Capitol Hill. e United States Armed Forces are made up of highly trained professionals, and our special operators are the best of the best. As Plewes sees it, there was a missing link. "At one time, 70 percent of Congress members had served in the military. at figure now stands at only 20 percent," says Plewes. "ese special operators are our most elite service members. ey have experience and insight like few others." Unleashing that potential and enabling former special operators to lend their perspective to lawmakers was precisely Focus philanthropy Dominique Plewes with SOF Congressional Fellows << COURTESY PHOTOGRAPHY ranchandcoast.com 30 JANUARY 2026 RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE