David Lynch gives $1M to teach vets meditation

LOS ANGELES — Academy Award-nominated director David Lynch - a longtime advocate of Transcendental Meditation - wants soldiers and veterans to experience the stress-reducing benefits of TM.

The David Lynch Foundation is giving $1 million in grants to teach the meditation technique to active-duty military personnel and veterans and their families suffering from post-traumatic stress.

The filmmaker said Friday that the grants are from the Operation Warrior Wellness division of his foundation, which funds meditation instruction for various populations, including inner-city students and jail inmates.

Recipients of Operation Warrior Wellness grants include Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the Wounded Warrior Project and UCLA's Operation Mend.

Lynch's credits include the films "Eraserhead," "The Elephant Man," "Blue Velvet," "Wild at Heart," "Lost Highway" and "Mulholland Drive," and the TV series "Twin Peaks."