This has been a partnered post with the Believe in Heroes campaign, but all opinions about this great cause are entirely my own.
As a child I loved listening to my uncles and father talk about the exotic locations they had visited and the people they had met along the way, many of whom had changed their lives. Were they world travelers? Not exactly. They were military personnel, stationed around the globe, serving in various wars and conflicts. That has made the Wounded Warrior Project a cause close to my heart. With Veterans Day approaching, it saddens me to think over 48,000 servicemen and women have been physically injured in our recent conflicts. But physical wounds are not all they suffer; it is estimated as many as 400,000 service members live with the invisible wounds of war including combat-related stress, major depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder and another 320,000 are believed to have experienced a traumatic brain injury while on deployment. We can help make a difference in their lives through the Believe in Heroes program, a program dedicated to tell the stories of wounded veterans and help with their long term needs.
How does it work? From now until November 20th, you can shop to support the brands who support our heroes. There’s over 45 leading consumer brands and there’s something for everyone, from Starbucks coffee to get you going in the morning to Gerber baby food for the little ones. These brands have made a fixed donation to Wounded Warrior Project through the Believe in Heroes campaign of $1,150,000 for this year. That can equal a lot of help to these forgotten heroes, like Erik Schei, a former sergeant in the US Army who was the one and only victim of a sniper attack in Iraq. Wounded by a bullet that pierced his head and entered his brain, he is bound to a wheelchair with limited ability to move and speak. His family has found help for Erik through Wounded Warrior Project. He has recently enrolled in the WWP Independence Project, an initiative that pairs severely injured veterans with specialists who help them relearn certain skills and help them transition back into the community.
Want to learn more about the Believe in Heroes Project? You can read more about it on the Believe in Heroes blog. You can also connect with them through social media. Remember, “The Greatest Casualty is Being Forgotten.”
How does one help with this program? Do I go to the store and purchase items from the list and a portion of the purchase price is donated ? Or do I purchase items from the list and donate the items?
My momma married one so you bet I do!!
What a great program…our vets deserve so much more for what they have had to sacrifice.
it stuns me when people think differently.
The Believe in Heroes Project sounds amazing. I will have to see how i can get involved.
Sounds like a great program. Thanks for sharing how we can help.
Love this. There feels to be a social disconnect between how our country is kept safe and caring for those you ensure that.
It’s good to see brands coming together to help our Veterans. I hope it’s not just for publicity because as a Veteran it hurts to see how many, especially our Vietnam vets not getting what they should be getting.
This sounds like a great way to help those who have helped us. I always love seeing people come together to help the veterans.
What an amazing program. I’ll have to tell some people about it. Thanks for letting us know.
i come from a military family so seeing companies helping make me very happy.
It’s always nice to hear of programs that are in support of our veterans. We are so lucky to have them and often take their sacrifices for granted. It’s important to give back and this sounds like an easy program to participate in!
This sounds really wonderful. I wish we did stuff like this here in Canada, but I’m so happy to see it done in the US! This is great.
My son is a vet. I’m happy to say that, he has made us all proud. I love to hear of programs that remember the vets.
My husband is retired military and so is many in his family. This look like a great program and helping veterans is always a great cause.
What a wonderful program. I think that Veterans should be honored in every way they can be.
This sounds wonderful. I love that Vets are being honored!
This is an awesome program. Veterans are definitely heroes, and we need to support them however we can.
What an incredible program. I’m going to make sure to shop for participating brands on my next grocery trip.
I do love this project. Our heroes deserve our gratitude, respect and so much more.
This is a HUGE issue I believe in, thank you for sharing this. When I see men in uniform at a restaurant/quick grocery I like to pay for their lunch as a thank you. I can’t put into words how I feel about people who put their lives on the line for our country, a bravery I can never muster up and can never over thank.
This makes me very happy to read. I certainly do believe in heroes – and these are the kinds I believe in. An amazing project.
What a wonderful project! Thank you for sharing this! I am so thankful to all of the Men and Women that have served our country.
I’m always so glad to see companies helping our vets. Whether you agree with the decisions from the higher ups that they carry out, they go into the service for our country. We should never forget that.
This sounds like a wonderful project! I love that Veterans are recognized as they rightfully should be!
They absolutely should be. They put their lives on the line.
I am married to a vet, so it makes my heart happy when I hear about programs like this.