When I began visiting Walter Reed Army Medical Center in the fall of 2004, I thought it would be to visit injured soldiers from my friend's unit until they healed and went home, or until my friend completed his year tour of duty in Iraq. I never dreamed that going to the hospitals would be so contagious. And I never dreamed that almost 7 years later, thousands of individuals would come through my life and change it, and in such a profound way. I am busier now than I have ever been in my life. Assisting our injured servicemen and women that have put their lives on the line each and every day for our freedom is one of the most rewarding accomplishments, next to raising my four children, that I have ever done. I love helping people. Especially those that so selflessly made conscious decisions to protect us, knowing the risks of injury, loss of limb(s), and even loss of life.
Those early visits made me realize that when families get calls in the middle of the night informing them that their loved ones have been injured, it means stressful packing and trips to hospitals, not knowing what to expect when they got there. It means leaving home, jobs, bills and in many cases, other children at home. Seeing moms and dads crying in the halls of the hospitals wondering how they were going to pay their bills, hit home as I wondered what I would do if in their shoes.
Through the wonderful support of our community and our nation, we have been able to provide more than $820,000 in emergency financial assistance, travel, groceries and essential items. We are also blessed to get our troops out to baseball games, dinners, concerts, retreats and so much more. We could not do that without community support.
We receive emails from families and hospitals on a daily basis asking for help. From diapers and baby formula, to help with utilities, rent etc. We take our job as seriously as those that took their jobs seriously. Help doesn't stop with the holidays. It needs to continue throughout the year. Thank you for all you do, and for your support of Operation Second Chance.
For those of you that are wondering – my friend made it safely home from Iraq in June of 2005.
V/r, Cindy
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