By Molly Henderson, Veteran Advocate, WestCare Iowa/Family Alliance for Veterans of America (FAVA)
In Lakota, Iowa, located in Kossuth County, Hunting with Heroes is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization that has been busy enhancing the welfare and recovery of wounded and non-wounded active U.S. Military personnel and Veterans by providing physical and emotional healing through the hunting and fishing trips that they organize.
They organized their Veterans Day outing as a drive-through event on Main Street that acknowledges and shows appreciation for all Veterans who have served and for Veteran widows by giving out gifts and meal kits! WestCare Iowa – FAVA’s Lead Veteran Navigator, Rose Holmes, decided to work on Veterans Day so that our Veterans would be able to benefit from this generous event. Thank you, Rose! Each Veteran received a box full of food and other goodies such as flashlights and gas cards! They were able to give away over 3000 pounds of ham, nearly 6000 potatoes, three raffle prizes of custom-made rifles, 500 Maglites, nearly $20,000 in gifts, 10,000 ounces of Pepsi products, over 200 pounds of pumpkin pie, and nearly 2000 canned goods to the 530+ Veterans that attended the event!
Thank you, Hunting with Heroes for the generosity that you’ve shown for our Veterans! We appreciate your kindness and ongoing efforts. We would also like to thank their community partners, Christensen Farms, HyVee Grocery Store, The Heartwarmers Quilt Guild, and Pepsi for sponsoring this event. To all of our Veterans whether they are at home or abroad, are active duty, reserves, or retired – THANK YOU!
