The two Navy brothers using their own experience to build a platform for veterans

We travelled to Lemoore, California to sit down with the brothers behind Woobie.

"There are about 19 million – give or take – veterans. Only about 5.5 million actually receive any sort of compensation." 

That's Cole Tenney. Together with his brother Joe, he set out to change that number.

Two brothers from central Illinois

Joe and Cole grew up in a blue-collar small town in central Illinois. Cole describes their upbringing: "We were raised around hard work and a mindset of figuring things out for yourself. After high school, we both joined the Navy looking for opportunity and a bigger purpose."

Joe became a parachute rigger, stationed in Lemoore, California, deploying aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt. Cole trained as an Aviation Structural Mechanic Safety Equipmentman (AME) stationed in San Diego and Virginia Beach, deploying aboard the USS Carl Vinson.

But when they left the military, they ran into the same problem thousands of veterans hit. When trying to apply for benefits from the VA – the US Department of Veterans Affairs – they found that it was not at all simple.

"Joe and I both dealt with denials," Cole says. "We saw firsthand how confusing and inconsistent the system could be. A lot of veterans either get denied outright or underrated because they submit weak evidence, incomplete medical documentation, or they simply don't know how the process works."

That frustration turned into deep research of the VA system, which eventually turned into helping friends, then online communities.

"We want to create the infrastructure that we didn't have when we were getting out."

And they did. That infrastructure is Woobie.

Why "Woobie"?

Anyone who has served knows what a 'woobie' is. It's the unofficial name for the US military-issue poncho liner: a lightweight, quilted nylon blanket that's become something of a legend among service members.

A woobie is warm, versatile, and reliable. Soldiers have been known to carry theirs long after leaving service.

So for Joe and Cole, the name made sense. They too were building something that stays with you long after you leave.

How Woobie was born

Joe and Cole knew the problem intimately, which is why they decided to solve it themselves. Woobie offers something specific that most veterans don't know they're missing: an Independent Medical Opinion, or IMO.

An IMO is a formal medical review that connects a veteran's service history to their current condition. Put simply, it’s medical documentation that can help provide additional context around a veteran’s condition and service history.

Without one, applications stall, get denied, or come back with a fraction of the rating a veteran is actually owed. As Cole explains:

"The VA works heavily off documentation and medical rationale. A lot of claims fail because veterans have symptoms, but nobody formally explains the connection in a strong medical way that the VA can use to make a decision."

The problem is that getting one through the traditional system is slow, expensive, and complicated. Woobie makes it straightforward.

When I asked Cole what the process looks like for a veteran coming to Woobie for the first time, he said:

"We help veterans understand what types of medical records and supporting documentation are commonly important in disability claims, connect them with independent medical providers when appropriate, and provide educational resources and community support throughout the process.

A big part of what we do is helping reduce confusion and giving veterans a clearer understanding of how the system works so they can make more informed decisions."

Where veterans find each other

Woobie isn't just a document service. Members also get access to peer support, educational workshops, live Q&A sessions, and resources focused on medical documentation and understanding the VA disability system.

This wasn't an afterthought for the brothers. In fact, the community came first.

"The community existed before Woobie did. After I got out of the military, I started what was originally just a veteran networking group online. It was really just veterans sharing experiences, helping each other transition out, talking careers, benefits, life after service, things like that."

Over time, those conversations kept coming back to the same thing: VA disability claims. People were frustrated and looking for guidance from someone who'd been through it. That led to a 52-page ebook, then relationships with independent medical providers, then Woobie.

Why Woobie chose Whop

Before Whop, running Woobie meant juggling multiple platforms just to keep the business running.

"Our initial introduction to Whop was really into the business solutions," Joe says.

The consolidation was the entry point, but it was the support that impressed him most. "If something pops up, it's a text or a DM away, and usually it's solved within a couple of minutes."

Cole is particularly excited about Whop Ads, Whop's native advertising platform that lets sellers run paid campaigns directly within the ecosystem. "Having the payment system integrated is massive," he says.

More than any single feature, it's the breadth of what Whop offers that stands out to him.

"I feel like we are constantly getting new solutions put in front of us before we even know we need it. That's just something you don't get with other platforms."

The mission isn't finished yet

To date, the platform has helped secure hundreds of millions in benefits for veterans who earned them. But for Joe and Cole, they're just getting started.

Millions of veterans are still without the benefits they earned, and Joe and Cole believe they deserve clearer education, stronger support systems, and better access to information throughout the process.

Together with Whop, they're building the platform those veterans deserve.