F.E. Warren, Wyoming -- Bernie McGrenahan, a stand-up comedian and motivational speaker, performs “Comedy is the Cure” to military members for the first time in over 18 months on June 15, 2021, in the base theatre at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.
He delivers the original comedy with a message, using humor followed by his personal life testimony to demonstrate the negative outcomes of alcohol dependence and the importance of staying resilient.
During the show, he shares his struggles with alcohol abuse, including three DUIs and a six-month sentence in Los Angeles County when he was 26 years old.
“Alcohol dependency can take 10 times more from someone's quality of life than it can ever provide,” he said. “Alcohol doesn’t make your problems go away, it compounds them.”
After deciding to get help and change his life, McGrenahan just passed 30 years free from alcohol & drugs.
“The biggest challenge I had in my life was when I had crossed into the category that I had a problem,” said McGrenahan. “I had to say, I’m not going to ignore the signs anymore, I’m going to change.”
McGrenahan’s message for military members is to recognize the dangers of alcohol abuse and know that help is always available.
“To be able to get on stage and share some humor and hear the laughter in return was very fulfilling and healing,” he said. “I will forever be grateful to the men and women who wear the uniform day in and day out.”
Hundreds of military bases have reported a substantial drop in DUI arrests in the months that followed Bernie’s Comedy with a Safety Message program, according to McGrenham.
He has opened Las Vegas concerts for today’s biggest stars, as well as been featured on the “Tonight Show” and Comedy Central and the #1 best-selling book, “‘I KILLED’ True Road Stories from America’s Top Comedians”.
McGrenahan’s shows have been performed at over 300 military bases worldwide, and is the top-requested prevention and risk-reduction program across America, according to McGrenhan.