In honor of Veteran’s Day this year (2020), BMRA wanted to give back to our veteran community as a company and spent our time volunteering with Willing Warriors. Founded in 2006, Willing Warriors began as a community service project that provided a “taste-of-home” experience to wounded, ill, or injured service members, and disabled veterans at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The project was met with such praise by everyone involved that in 2012, a dedicated retreat property was purchased to allow recovering Warriors a “relaxing getaway from the medical center environment“.
This was a particularly special event for us, not only because BMRA is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), but also because we make it a part of our company culture to be called to serving others and making a difference where we can. We were so excited to be able to lend a hand with Willing Warriors, as their mission is incredible.
What do the warriors and their families get to experience at Willing Warriors?
Willing Warriors is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization offering cost-free getaways from the hospital environment where the warriors and their families can come to relax, spend quality time together, and reconnect in a home setting.
The average hospital stay for our recovering warriors is about 300 days. Following the healing of physical wounds, many of them are challenged with the “invisible wounds” of Post Traumatic Stress (PTS) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) for a lifetime.
Willing warriors volunteer
It’s important that these families take a break due to the heavy toll of the long recovery process. The Willing Warrior’s Warrior Retreat at Bull Run provides the needed getaway and offers over 60 activities for the whole family including professional photoshoots; fishing excursions; helicopter tours; horseback riding; canine therapy sessions; visits to museums, shooting ranges, vineyards; events at the Hylton Performing Arts Center, etc. They are even treated to a custom, gourmet dinner prepared and served by professional chefs from the Presidential Food Service at the White House.
Lasting Impacts
The Warriors are able to leave this retreat and return to the routine of rebuilding their lives feeling refreshed and inspired – an important step in the healing process.
In what ways did BMRA help out Willing Warriors?
The Warrior Retreat functions by hosting a family a week. There is a day or two between families for the staff and volunteers to clean and prepare the property for the next guests. However, with 37-acre grounds, a lot of hands are required to keep their property beautiful and ready for another healing experience. The BMRA team was tasked with various jobs like raking and disposing of leaves (we counted over 20 truckloads!) and addressing thank you letters for their recent virtual Gala event. Despite being a rainy Veteran’s Day this year, we were so happy to be out there, knowing that the veterans and their families would enjoy the beauty of the property and have that recharging time together.
We cannot wait to volunteer with Willing Warriors again and encourage others to learn more about their mission here: https://www.willingwarriors.org/