Editor’s note: This article is by Edward Damon of the Berkshire Eagle. It was first published in the Bennington Banner on Oct. 1, 2015.
MANCHESTER — Area programs that help veterans in southern Vermont have received some help from a recent golf tournament.
The Vermont Wounded Warrior Committee’s fourth annual golf tournament raised $67,000 for five Vermont organizations, according to Chairman Don Keelan.
The local group is not affiliated with the National Wounded Warrior Project. Checks were presented to representatives of each organization during an event at the Manchester Country Club on Wednesday.
The tournament was held at the country club on Sept. 9 with 90 golfers participating, Keelan said.
The committee also invited 38 men and women who had served in the military during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, a dozen of whom had received the Purple Heart.
Since its first tournament in 2012, the 12-member committee has distributed over $181,000 to local programs that help Vermont Veterans, according to Keelan.
The Vermont Veterans’ Home received $20,000 for its residents’ assistance fund, money which will help residents who struggle to purchase personal items.
Col. Al Faxon, the organization’s chief operating officer and deputy administrator, said those living in the home are seniors and some of them have little money. The program provides them a home and, for many, offers a chance to connect with other veterans of similar age.
Bennington County Meals on Wheels will use its $15,000 to begin construction of a new walk-in refrigerator at its site in Bennington. The Veterans Outreach and Family Resource Center will use $20,000 to refurbish its headquarters, which is at the Veterans’ Home, and to find shelter for several families who have recently become homeless.
Purple Hearts Reunited will receive $8,000. The Georgia, Vermont, nonprofit’s mission is to return its titular military medals to the rightful owners or families, according to founder and CEO Zachariah Fike. The medal is awarded to those wounded or killed in action.
For many families, the medal became the last material thing from a family member killed during military service. And a lost medal causes much distress to people, he said.
“We’re able to bring closure, giving someone a ceremony for the first time,” said Fike, an active member of the Vermont National Guard.
The Dodge House of Rutland will use its $4,000 to assist the area’s homeless, including veterans.
Correction: The amount donated to the Vermont Veterans Home was incorrect in an earlier version of this report.
