Back in action on the volunteer scene

USO volunteering

Although I’ve been MIA on the blogging scene that’s simply not the case when it comes my commitment to volunteering! As promised in my last post, I came home ready to serve those who served. In fact, within a few days of my return from volunteering for duty as part of the Unified Command’s response to the BP Oil Spill in Louisiana, I was back at Walter Reed dealing poker to Wounded Warriors through the USO.

It was great to see a lot of familiar faces at the Mologne House for our bimonthly Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournament as well as a few new ones. This is by far my favorite event with the USO and I blog about it often. However, something new this time around: Montel Williams was a guest dealer. He was pretty cool to everyone and made it a point to deal to every table. He added a new element to the night and all the troops and their families were excited to meet him and show him their poker faces.

P2V volunteering

Two Saturdays ago I showed up at Fort Belvoir for the Doggie Days with Pets2Vets. This volunteer assignment was going to be a chill event that centered on informing attendees what Pets 2 Vets is all about, but it turned out to be anything but chilly. Temperatures were soaring that day and were well over 100 degrees. Fortunately there were kiddie pools everywhere to keep the pooches cool, but not too many people ventured out due to the extreme heat.

It was still a great chance to catch up with Pets 2 Vets founder David Sharpe and hear that the organization, still really in its infancy, is continuing to grow. From their website, P2V seeks to alleviate the psychological suffering of our nation’s heroes and to reduce the number of sheltered animals in the United States by:

• Aiding our military veterans, law enforcement officers, emergency first responders, and their families with rehabilitation through animal companionship;
• Saving sheltered animals from euthanasia by providing them with a loving home;
• Increasing public awareness of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI) and other challenges facing today’s heroes;
• Rallying support for animal welfare and the adoption of sheltered animals.

Baseball outing

One of the toughest things about coming home was learning that one of my favorite Wounded Warriors was back in the hospital and continuing to have issues related primarily to his war-related injuries from two years ago. While he wasn’t up for visits at the hospital, my boyfriend and I made sure to pick up his son and take him out to a baseball game and get him off Walter Reed for a few hours of fun. I know it puts his dad’s mind at ease to know his family is taken care of and we had a blast with G in Baltimore.

First, we got into the Harbor area a bit early so we decided to start our day at the Discovery Port. Let me just say if you have kids, take them to that place. I think he would have spent all day climbing around in there if we let him. Alas, we had tickets to see the Orioles take on the Minnesota Twins, my hometown team. We had to leave a bit early due to the impending storm, but all-in-all it was a pretty fantastic day. Yet, the most rewarding part came later in a simple message to me.

After dropping G off at home, who was exhausted from the day’s activities, I received a text from his father who told me that if we had met sooner I would be the godmother to his son. Words can’t even describe how much that meant to me. Ralph is one of the toughest and bravest Soldiers I know and the fact that he trusts me that much, well, that’s just priceless.  Honestly, those few words solidified for me how important it is for our troops to know that we’re here for them after all they’ve given for us. That extends to their families and if I can do more, I’m glad he knows that I’ll be here.