Send us a text Angel Cortez shares his incredible journey from growing up in Southern California as the first American-born in his Mexican immigrant family to becoming an Army Ranger and eventually founding a tactical training company. • Being raised in low-income neighborhoods around Orange County while skateboarding provided community during frequent moves • Experiencing 9/11 as a sixth-grader and feeling an immediate call to military service • Enlisting at 17 as a Combat Engineer specifically to counter the IEDs killing American soldiers • Deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan where he hunted for IEDs and experienced intense combat situations • Working with Special Forces in Afghanistan living in a compound in hostile territory facing daily attacks • Surviving a devastating suicide bomber attack that wounded dozens of Americans • Completing rigorous Ranger training and earning his tab despite multiple challenges • Transitioning to civilian life and starting Defense Strategies Group to train military, law enforcement and civilians • Balancing tactical preparedness with enjoying life and raising children with accountability • Running OG Pumpkin, which supports veteran and low-income community programs Visit Defense Strategies Group in Beverly Hills for training in firearms, combatives, and self-defense skills. Follow Angel's community work at @the_OG_pumpkin on Instagram. Support the show
