Winter 2012, Vol. 20

YELLOWRIBBON FUND UPDATE
WINTER2012
VOLUME20
OntheRoadtoRecovery…
A PLACE TO CALL hOME
HIS LEFT LEG TO
AN IMPROVISED
EXPLOSIVE DEVICE (IED)
IN AFGHANISTAN, HE
LEFT THE HOSPITAL.
IEDs continued to injure other Marines
from his unit, who also arrived at Walter
Reed. During their outpatient treatment, if
there was no room at Mologne House and
no military housing available, they had to
live in barracks without their families. An
apartment, Glen figured, would give them
a place to call home and keep their families
together while they continued on the road
to recovery.
Photo by Kristin Henderson
The 39-year-old Marine
moved into Mologne House,
the hotel that housed outpatients at the old Walter Reed
facility. There, entire families
lived in a single room. “That will make you
crazy,” Glen says.
According to Glen, “After an injury your life is anything but normal.
Living in an apartment like this, cooking, interacting with neighbors,
helps you get back to normal.”
As a senior enlisted Marine, Glen’s job was
to take care of the Marines he led. So he
continued to take care of them while they
recovered. Through the grapevine, he
heard that the woman to call was the Yellow
Ribbon Fund’s Diane Shoemaker.
Diane is YRF’s director of Housing &
Transportation. In addition to requests for
apartments, she’s fielded calls for more than
1,500 free rental cars and nearly 10,000 free
hotel nights for visiting family members,
sometimes in the middle of the night.
RECORD
YRF
Photo by Kristin Henderson
ONLY FOUR MONTHS
AFTER STAFF SERGEANT
GLEN SILVA LOST
n Freerentalcars................1,619
n Freerentalcardays............61,278
n Freetaxicabrides.............. 19,638
n Freehotelnights ..............10,695
n Freenightsin9apartments .......9,476
n Thousandsoffreeticketsforlocalevents
n Countlesshoursofmentoringandguidance
(continued on page 3)
You can donate to the Yellow Ribbon Fund through the Combined Federal Campaign number:46855
UPCOMING EVENTS
Dec 7 & 8 – YRF’s annual “Uncle Vito’s Christmas Party” at Fort Belvoir and Walter Reed
Dec 11 – 1st Annual YRF No-Limit Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournament, Washington, DC
w ww.yellowribbonfund.or g
The Yellow Ribbon Fund’s
Mission: Welcoming Our
Injured Service Members Home
A NOTE F ROM YOUR C HAIRMAN & E XECUTIVE D IRECTOR
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
LtCol John Adams, USAFR (Ret.)
SFC Jason Burr, USA (Ret.)
Corky Crovato
ADM Bruce DeMars, USN (Ret.)
Louis T. Donatelli
John F. Jaeger
Annie McChrystal
Gen Stan McChrystal, USA (Ret.)
Vito Pampalona
Edward J. Quinn, Jr.
Barbara Z. Sweeney
CDR David A. Tarantino, USN
William B. Wallace
STAFF
Mark E. Robbins, CAE
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Amanda Basek
DIRECTOR OF THE AMBASSADOR PROGRAM
Jessica Fasnacht
DIRECTOR OF THE FAMILY
CAREGIVER PROGRAM
Kristin Henderson
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
Mia Itoh
ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR
Ashley Keene
DIRECTOR OF EVENTS & VOLUNTEERS
Diane Shoemaker
DIRECTOR OF HOUSING
& TRANSPORTATION
Robert J. Talbot
DIRECTOR OF THE MENTORING PROGRAM
Jack Tierney
ASST. SECRETARY & TREASURER
Marie Robey Wood
DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL PROJECTS
Please submit your comments
to Kristin Henderson, Editor,
at 240-223-1180 or via email at
[email protected]
Yellow Ribbon Fund, Inc.
4905 Del Ray Avenue, Suite 500
Bethesda, MD 20814
240-223-1180
www.yellowribbonfund.org
2 Hope Is Overrated
Hope. It seems like such a good thing, a warm and fuzzy emotion, comforting and sweet.
Expectant parents hope for a healthy baby. Children hope for that next great present.
Fans hope their team wins. But hope is overrated.
Hope guarantees nothing. When the person you love has been injured in a war zone, you
don’t want hope. You want certainty. You want to know for sure they’re going to recover.
Yet all you have is hope – and hope can be tough.
So at the Yellow Ribbon Fund, we offer something better than hope. We offer a little bit
of certainty.
No matter how the recovery’s going, family members know they can count on a hotel
room from YRF when they come to visit their injured loved one. They know if they need
a rental car to get around, YRF will make sure it’s there for them. They can look forward
to free tickets to sporting events. They don’t have to wonder where to find a winter coat,
a haircut, or a massage to ease their stress. The Yellow Ribbon Fund provides at least that
much certainty for hundreds of injured service members and thousands of their family
members and friends.
The Yellow Ribbon Fund is in an extraordinary position. We see the reasons for despair:
The serious injuries and complications that make for an uncertain prognosis. We see the
worry in the parent’s eyes, the weight of an unknown future on a young wife’s shoulders.
We also see the reasons for hope: The joy and relief of the family whose loved one opens
his eyes and knows who they are. A young man with no legs who’s walking again. The
soldier with one arm who has now taken up golf.
Between the hope and despair – with your support – we provide sure and certain help
they can count on.
Jim Bugg
Chairman
Mark E. Robbins, CAE
Executive Director
Donated Tickets Get Thumbs Up From Injured
Service Members
Donate your unused tickets for
sporting and cultural events and
guarantee a mental health break
for injured service members and
a tax deduction for yourself. So
far this year, the injured and their
families have enjoyed
Nationals, Redskins, and
Orioles games, Wolftrap concerts,
National Theater’s production of
“The Color Purple”, and more...
all thanks to the generosity of
Yellow Ribbon Fund supporters.
Photo by Ashley Keene
James S. Bugg, Sr.
CHAIRMAN
www.yellowribbonfund.org
A PLACE TO CALL hOME
YRFSupporters
(cover story continued)
PUT THEIR MONEY
WhERE THEIR MOUTh IS
Why are these people smiling? The committee behind
the 4th Annual Yellow Ribbon
Fund Golf Outing at Great
Oaks Country Club in Rochester, Mich., is smiling because
the charity golf event brought
in more than $73,000 for our
injured service members and
their families. Our thanks go out
to (L-R): Elizabeth Chevalier, John Chevalier, Karen Head, Anthony Pampalona,
Vito M. Pampalona, Vito A. Pampalona, Stanley McChrystal, Annie McChrystal,
Trevor Pampalona, Charles Promesso, Scott Barone, Thomas Saracino and all the
golfers and sponsors who made it such a great day!
CLUB FUNDRAISERS
On a stormy fall
night, 200 members
and guests of the
Chevy Chase Club
raised more than
$33,000 for the work
of the Yellow Ribbon
Fund. During an
evening emcee’d by
Fox News anchor
Brit Hume, they got to know the injured Soldiers and Marines who attended,
including SSgt Glen Silva and YRF board member General Stanley McChrystal
(Ret.), who both addressed the crowd.
Interested in hosting a fundraising event at your home or club?
Contact YRF Executive Director Mark Robbins: 240-223-1180 or
[email protected].
w w w . y e l l o w r i b b o n f u n d . o r g Photo by Kristin Henderson
Photo by Janet Flores
ChARITY SPORTS EVENTS
Photo by Kristin Henderson
Glen and Diane, seen here at a fundraiser for YRF, worked together
to place Sergeant TJ Brooks (right) and his wife in a YRF apartment.
Like Glen, TJ stepped on a hidden IED in Afghanistan.
One family member who needed a hotel was Glen’s
sister. Glen recalls, “It was nice to have her come out.
Talking to you on the phone is one thing. But to see
you face to face is a whole other ball of wax. Family members need to see you to understand what’s
happened, accept it, and move forward.” A free hotel
helps make that possible.
Diane has also found and furnished nine YRF apartments, which all meet Diane’s requirements: safe,
homey, handicapped accessible, and conveniently located close to the new Walter Reed National Military
Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.
Glen was working with Diane to get one of his
Marines into an apartment when Diane surprised
him. “All you ever do is take care of your Marines,”
she said. “We’re going to give you an apartment, too.”
He didn’t want to take it, but she pointed out, “It’ll be
easier on you when your daughter comes to visit.”
Nine-year-old Elizabeth divided her time between
Glen and his ex-wife in Ohio. Glen knew he still had
three more major surgeries ahead, followed by a year
of rehab. A barracks or a hotel was no place for a little
girl. So he moved into the apartment.
Glen plans to stay in the Marine Corps. When he
moves on, another injured service member will move
in and call this apartment home.
Photos by Kristin Henderson
Great American Cookies
presented a $5,000 check
to YRF board chairman
Jim Bugg (second from
left). All summer long, $2
of every patriotic cookie
cake was earmarked for the
Yellow Ribbon Fund. The
check was presented to Jim
by company representatives Bob Cross on the left, vice president of plant operations; and on the right
Chris Dull, CEO of GFG Management, and Richard Hay, brand director.
Photo courtesy of Great American Cookies
FOR ThE INJURED AND ThEIR FAMILIES
Glen’s daughter eagerly decorated
her own room, exclaiming, “This
place is awesome!” In the summer
she loves swimming in the apartment complex’s pool.
3
Volunteers&Events
YRF VOLUNTEERS
IN ACTION
For the big WALTER REED MOVE to the National
Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, only four groups
were asked to help: Operation Homefront, the USO,
and the Red Cross, all large organizations... and the
Yellow Ribbon Fund. We’re proud to be in such good
company! We may be the smallest, but we’ve proved that
we seek out ways to be the solution. Twenty-five YRF
volunteers assisted with the move. Others installed more
than 350 iPod docking stations that YRF purchased for
patient rooms at the new Walter Reed and Fort Belvoir
Community Hospital. More than 1,200 volunteers have
helped make YRF, small as it is, the premier organization
for assisting the injured and their families.
“Volunteeringismywayofsayingthankyou.”
–YRFvolunteer
4
YRF’s group SPORTING EVENT OUTINGS for injured service members
and their families gave one wounded Chicagoan (waving, above left) a taste of
home – he and his family got to watch their beloved White Sox play the Orioles from M&T Bank’s luxury suite at Baltimore’s Camden Yards. Other V.I.P.
outings brought groups to skyboxes at FedEx Field.
Photo by Ashley Keene
Top: The day before the move, a team of volunteers installed YRF’s
iPod docking stations in patient rooms. Above: On moving day,
patients from the old Walter Reed arrived at the new one.
Our FIRST EVENT AT FORT BELVOIR! The Walter Reed move scattered
patients from Bethesda, Md., to Fort Belvoir, Va. So when the captains from
the blockbuster reality TV series “Deadliest Catch” came to town, volunteer
Susan Goodell and Volunteers & Events director, Ashley Keene, took them to
visit Belvoir first, along with a couple of powerboat racers. Ashley (with the
captains and racers, above) even got the powerboat on post... to the amazement of everyone who saw it cruise by on dry land.
Photos by Ashley Keene
Photo by Ashley Keene
Photo by Kristin Henderson
Photo courtesy of Ashley Keene
Every week our volunteers are organizing social
events and outings, and meeting individual needs.
A few highlights...
Our HALLOWEEN PARTY volunteers set up kids’ trick-or-treating and facepainting, and a pumpkin carving contest. The fierce competition began the
week before with delivery of 50 pumpkins to the carvers – make that 51. Soon
after the handout, Ashley got a call from an injured service member: “Mine
broke! Can you bring me another one?”Ashley had his back. One emergency
pumpkin run later, he was back in the fight for gourd gouging glory.
www.yellowribbonfund.org
CaregiverProgram
YRF CARES
FOR THE CAREGIVERS
Chaz’s arm was saved, along with his sense of humor!
During his recovery at Walter Reed, the Allen family
has joined our outings and made use of a free YRF
rental car and free hotel rooms for visiting family members.
Follow Jessica’s blog at
http://adventuresofteamallen.
blogspot.com or on Facebook
at www.facebook.com/
GoTeamAllen.
The Caregiver Program welcomes back Director Jess Fasnacht from maternity
leave, and says THANK YOU to Interim Director Eliza Palmer for her great
work! As the wives of injured service members, both Jess and Eliza bring a special
understanding to the Yellow Ribbon Fund’s services for caregivers, which include
massages, yoga, outings, and activities for the children.
I called and spoke with the rear detachment sergeant in charge. He asked me twice
if I was sitting down. Finally I told him if he didn’t start talking I was going to
come to Fort Campbell immediately. He told me he was so sorry and that he was
just going to read the report word for word. ‘On January 22 [today], Staff Sergeant
Charles Allen was on a dismounted patrol in the Zhari district in Afghanistan. He
stepped on and detonated an IED and has lost both of his legs. One leg is missing
above and one is missing below the knee, in addition, his arm was severed.’ I
questioned what ‘severed’ meant and the sergeant told me that was all he had at
this point. After that I called my best friend Jessica. Months prior to this Jessica
had to call me for support because her husband Kyle had been diagnosed with
testicular cancer. When she answered the phone, I simply said, “It’s my turn.”
She said, “Wait, Chaz is in Afghanistan.” I said,“Yes,” and then proceeded to tell
her everything I knew. We decided that it really sucks to be 32 years old and her
hubby to be fighting cancer and now mine doesn’t have legs. She and I had a little
pity party and then, being my best friend, she said, “You’re ready now.” I said,
“I think so.”
Photo courtesy of Jessica Allen
What’s it like to get the news your loved one is injured?
▲
In Her Own Words
Photo courtesy of Eliza Palmer
– Jessica Allen
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ZOO DAYS enable injured families like “Team Allen” (center) to
practice normal family activities again. (That’s Eliza and husband
Aaron on the left.)
w w w . y e l l o w r i b b o n f u n d . o r g Photo by Marie Wood
After experiencing
a YRF massage,
Colleen gave one of our
Spa Days a try.
Photo by Jess Fasnacht
ley
Colleen Brad
YOGA helps caregivers manage their stress. (That’s Jess on the left.)
5
MentoringProgram
AmbassadorProgram
YRF’S MENTORING SUPPORT YRF AMBASSADORS
REACh OUT
Photo courtesy of Catholic University
We’re glad to report that many of the injured veterans reached in
their hometowns by program director Amanda Basek are doing
fine. Some, though, need a helping hand. With new ambassadors
stepping up every week, Amanda is connecting our veterans with
someone who cares.
Number of ambassadors so far:
Number of calls made to injured veterans:
Number of veterans matched with ambassadors:
Photo courtesy of Jim Amos
This fall the NCAA encouraged universities and colleges to
recognize injured service members during their athletic events.
Several from Walter Reed were named honorary captains at four
Catholic University home games, thanks to YRF’s Mentoring
Program director, Bob Talbot. Honored as heroes by more than a
thousand of their peers (above), Army SGT Evan Cole performs
the pre-game coin toss with Marine Sgt John Patterson, Army SGT
Matt White, and Marine Lance Corporal Matias Ferreira.
44
Ambassador JIM AMOS, a Tennessee
businessman, has been working with
HEATHER McCLELLAN, the widow
of Army Sergeant Justin McClellan, to
get her questions answered about the
death certificate. Heather’s still having
rough days. Justin survived an IED
attack in Iraq only to pass away while
at Walter Reed.
Photo courtesy of Justin Wilson
▲
Army Sergeant ALBERT CASTILLO
met with Bob during a recent visit. Back
on active duty, he returned to Ft. Bragg,
N.C., from Afghanistan in time to
witness the birth of his second child.
▲
Army Sergeant BRET NEISEN and his
wife BRIDGET have returned to the
St. Louis area where Bret is completing
his therapy at Fort Leonard Wood.
Photo courtesy of Washington Nationals
6
www.yellowribbonfund.org
Photo courtesy of Bob Talbot
▲
Photo by Barbara Talbot
▲
Army Sergeant LUIS MORALES
and his wife KATHERINE
announced the birth of their first
child, Sophie. Luis has also been
awarded the Silver Star, one of the
military’s highest honors.
Photo courtesy of Bob Talbot
▲
Photo courtesy of Catholic University
Lance Corporal MATIAS FERREIRA
is considering a career in media and
communications after he’s medically retired
from the Marine Corps. Bob arranged for
him to meet with local radio and TV sportscaster Johnny Holliday, who will serve as
Matias’s mentor when he starts college
next year.
YRF Alumni Update
265
When ambassador JUSTIN
WILSON (center) isn’t on
the job for the General Services
Administration in Georgia, he’s
extending a hand to veterans in
North Carolina and Alabama.
(Spread the word: Ambassador
volunteers needed in those states!)
He and Amanda partnered with
Operation Second Chance to save
one veteran from being evicted.
Disabled by muscular dystrophy –
but not sidelined – Justin offers a can-do perspective to disabled vets.
(continued on page 7)
New & Ongoing Mentorships
Seaman JUDI BOYCE, an Operation Iraqi
Freedom veteran, was recovering from surgery
at Walter Reed while moving into an
apartment in Silver Spring ... with a little help
from YRF volunteer John Scango, who
provided the truck and members of Catholic
University’s baseball team, who provided
the muscle.
48
P R O F I L E
MEET
Corporal Jonathan & Stephanie Albrecht
I
Now Jon is carrying shrapnel throughout
his body, including his brain. He is living
with the invisible wounds of war that
so many of today’s service members
suffer from: PTSD and traumatic
brain injury, or TBI. He suffers from
constant headaches, but has insisted on
being taken off all pain meds to avoid
becoming dependent on the drugs. His
arms grow weary when he holds his baby
daughter, but still, he can hold her.
f there can be such a thing as a typical
young military family, Jonathan and
Stephanie Albrecht fit the description.
They are both 27 and live with their
two young children in an apartment in
Gaithersburg, Md.
Jon’s tumultuous youth included foster
care and gang life. As a result, he decided
to join the Army for the discipline it
offered him. Starting in 2005, he earned
his bachelor degree in computer science
between serving multiple tours in
Iraq and Afghanistan, where his unit
faced constant fire and incurred
many casualties.
Photo courtesy of Jon Albrecht
Like other young couples recuperating
at Walter Reed, they’re trying to adapt
to Jon’s changed physical and mental
condition from war injuries. But unlike
many of the others, Stephanie and Jon
knew from the start what they were getting
into as a couple: They met after he was
injured, while he was undergoing therapy
at a PTSD clinic in Richmond, Va.
Jon in Afghanistan.
Photo courtesy of Stephanie Albrecht
During his second Iraq tour, an IED
explosion left him with shrapnel in his
arm. After recuperating, he returned
to the fight, this time in Afghanistan
with the 82nd Airborne. There, another
explosion plunged him into a coma for
three months.
He goes to physical therapy three to
four times a week at Walter Reed and
enjoys hunting and fishing when he can.
The Yellow Ribbon Fund has reached
out to Stephanie through the Caregiver
Program, offering her free massages,
horseback riding, and a spa day at
Roxsan Day Spa in Bethesda.
The Albrechts are well aware of the high
divorce rate among couples such as
themselves, many of whom didn’t realize
what it would be like to live with lifechanging injuries. Yet Stephanie possesses
a deep understanding of what her
husband has been through and wants to
learn how to help him deal with his new
reality. Jon hopes to stay in the military,
where he has grown so much. But for
now, his job is to continue therapy and
get better, and then see what life has
in store.
Stephanie and Jon with their children, Garrett and Serenity.
– Marie Wood
Courtney and Vanessa, after he
received the Purple Heart.
www.yellowribbonfund.org
Ambassador ED NOWICKI,
who works on security issues,
is helping Marine Sergeant
COURTNEY RAUCH find a job
in law enforcement in Virginia.
Courtney and his wife Vanessa
lived in a YRF apartment while
he recovered from a bomb blast
in Afghanistan that cost him
his leg.
Photo courtesy of John Souza
Photo courtesy of Courtney Rauch
(continued from page 6)
While Army Master Sergeant
JOHN SOUZA was recovering
from his wartime injuries, he and
wife Debbie were able to use a
free YRF rental car and actively
participated in YRF events. Now
in Wisconsin, John is the first
YRF alumnus to volunteer as
an ambassador.
7
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
PA I D
Hagerstown, MD
Permit No. 93
Welcoming Our Injured Service Members Home
Yellow Ribbon Fund, Inc.
4905 Del Ray Avenue, Suite 500
Bethesda, MD 20814
240-223-1180
Say:
“Thank You
for Your Sacrifice”
With an End-of-Year Gift
Want to do more than just say, “Thank you”... but not sure
what else to do? The Yellow Ribbon Fund does. Injured service
members and their families have told us exactly what they need,
and we provide it – practical assistance, offered with dignity.
Send your generous contribution today and join us in giving
back to America’s proud heroes.
During Army First Sergeant Mike Leonard’s year and a half at Walter Reed, he and his wife Cheryl benefited
from YRF social events, outings, free car rentals, and travel assistance for their son’s visit.
Photo by Charles Lee