The Stacks - January through March 2026

Our Stacks have hit the ground running to represent Stack Up while holding in-person events. From January to March 2026, we had two stacks in particular to highlight. The Chicago Stack has been working hard to get more active in the Chicago area. Michael Stern, the Chicago Stack Lead has been working hard to put on events and meetups and help local Veterans who are struggling. Meanwhile, the Holloman Air Force Base Stack continues to lead in their weekly held tabletop game nights, highlighting how important it is to have consistent community events to look forward to.

Chicago, IL | January 27, 2026

The Chicago Stack made it out to a townhall meeting in January with local government candidates to speak about what can be done to aid Veterans.

Townhall meeting with government candidates for public offices. Spoke about what government can do for Veterans, how to help Veterans with connecting to the right resources, and ensure veterans find pathways to these resources. Held in Naperville, IL.

Michael Stern

Chicago, IL | February 11, 2026

In February, the Chicago Stack held a tabletop game night at Goblin Games & Hobby and they hope to return for more game nights.

Went to a local game store called Goblin Games & Hobby. We spoke about what Stack Up does, how it benefits veterans, and we played a game called Vantage.

The game store owner, Alex, was very open and welcoming to our group. This was the first event of the year and hopefully will be the start of a continual game night at this shop each month.

Michael Stern

Holloman Air Force Base | February 18, 2026

Meanwhile at Holloman Air Force Base, the Stack continues to hold weekly game nights. Apparently, they love competitive tabletop games more than co-op games.

Weekly game night! This week we gathered for some Munchkin, but sadly some didn't like it, so it ended up being far too friendly of a game. That's a first, seeing everyone trying to get along. After that we went over to Century: Spice Road. A crowd favorite! We pushed hard, but Rose managed to build her engine faster and push for the win super hard!

Theo Wiseman

Holloman Air Force Base | February 25, 2026

Theo Wiseman, lead of Holloman AFB chose to highlight in this update from February reasons why holding these weekly game nights is so important to him. The community around gaming together gives each other support through the tough times.

This was our weekly game night! We got to see Jeremiah come out again! We haven't seen him in a while, but we love when our friends from around the base come back out! This was also Nate's last night as he's moving to Colorado. It's a sad day for us, but being near family is the most important thing for him. These game nights have become a huge way for us to connect, share information, and just support each other. Even as the lead, my family has been going through a tough time, but just having a strong support structure based around these events helps a lot. Just to help us clear headspace, we went and even spent Saturday morning with one of our stack members to play a game and just talk for a bit. This week, we didn't play anything new, it was stuff like Chameleon, Love Letter, Citadels, etc. Which, by the way, Rose has been sweeping the board way too hard and winning too many games. We might have to put her in a time out!

Theo Wiseman

Chicago, IL | March 14, 2025

Recently, the Chicago Stack joined in on the Naperville St. Patrick's Day Parade! Pretty awesome to see.

Naperville St Patrick's Day Parade and lunch. This was not just Stack Up, but rather multiple chicagoland veteran non-profits: Stack Up, Irreverant Warrior, AllenForce, Naperville Responds to Veterans, and K9 for Veterans.

It was short notice that we were even allowed to be in the parade, so I had to scramble to make the flyers and get them printed, as well as coordinate with the others on where to go and when to meet up.

Michael Stern

Big thanks to our Chicago and Holloman AFB Stack Leads, Michael and Theo for continuing to show exemplary volunteer service through holding local events and creating community around them.

Join or start a Stack today with Stack Up. Give yourself something to look forward to by hosting gaming events and build community. If you have some friends and you already host regular hangouts, gather them together for a cause! Hit the button below to get started.