HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017!

Greetings!

           The D.A.V. hosts a Winter Sports Clinic in Snowmass, Colorado every year.  A few years ago I served as a volunteer in support of the Clinic, working out of Denver International Airport.  It was a marvelous experience I’ll never forget. My role, along with dozens of others, was to escort disabled veterans onto and off their planes.  These veterans came in from all over the United States.  And their single destination would be Snowmass, Colorado.  But in-between their flights, a V.I.P. lounge was set up for their convenience, stocked with generous supplies of food and beverages.  Veterans filled that lounge.  Airline personnel, and volunteers such as myself, served them.        

     Many of these hearty souls were combat veterans.  Some of them had P.T.S.D.  Some were amputees.  Regardless of condition, all had a similar eagerness to participate in the Sports Clinic.  That eagerness was evident to me in their energy and their smiles.  It was a privilege and a pleasure for me to visit with them, and perhaps help ease their travel weariness in some small way.          

     Then, a few days later, when the Winter Sports Clinic concluded, I was back at the airport helping to escort veterans arriving at the Denver airport from Snowmass.  They spent some time in the V.I.P. lounge, before being escorted finally to their homeward-bound planes.        

     I’ll never forget meeting one particular vision-impaired veteran from Albuquerque.  He and I had gotten somewhat acquainted in the V.I.P. lounge.  A Vietnam-era veteran, he had honorably served his country in the Army.  Those days in uniform were long past.  He walked with a white cane now. Though he was unable to see, I could tell his heart and spirit were soaring as we left the lounge arm in arm.  Snowmass had been a great experience for him. To reach his plane, we had to exit the terminal building and walk across the tarmac to the waiting aircraft.  My instructions were to board the plane with him and help him to his assigned seat.           

     So, walking across the tarmac arm in arm, his white cane tapping back and forth in front of him, we started to approach the plane.  Just then a most wonderful and unexpected thing happened.  One of the ground crew stopped what he was doing, snapped to attention, and silently rendered a hand salute.  Nothing was said. Nothing needed to be said. I don’t think the veteran I was accompanying knew he had just been saluted by someone he had never met.  But I knew.  And as I helped him board the plane and get to his assigned seat, it all gave me shivers. I felt great pride in our nation.  That simple hand salute from an unknown stranger gave me hope, and filled me with honor to be escorting this particular veteran I barely knew onto his plane.  I said my goodbyes, and exited the aircraft.          

American author Joseph Campbell wrote, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.”  Have you considered that because you served your nation in uniform, you may be a hero to someone, even to someone you have never met?           

You may be vision impaired, or have P.T.S.D.  You may be an amputee, or have any other kind of service-connected disability.  But you stepped forward to give your life to something much bigger than yourself - your country.  That makes you a hero. 

I am proud and humbled to serve alongside you, and I salute you.

    

Gratefully,

Your Chaplain

Paul Soderquist

FREE ART CLASSES FOR VETERANS

INCLUDES SUPPLIES

These classes are offered at: 

26540 N. SCOTTSDALE ROAD, Scottsdale, AZ 

(SW corner of Scottsdale Rd & Jomax)

These classes begin January 24th and continue into March 2017 . 

American Healing Arts Foundation (AHAF) a 501C3, non-profit organization is all about healing through the arts as we appreciate the freedoms we enjoy everyday in America.  Your service has given us the freedom to live in peace without fear, own businesses, make our own choices, speak out in public, vote and so much more. 

AHAF has their way of saying "THANK YOU" by offering free art classes including all art supplies with award-winning professional instructors.  Available classes are acrylic painting, oil painting, sculpting, creative writing, abstract illusionism and silk painting.   Should we add any new classes, we will quickly follow up with an announcement.  No experience is necessary!

 Please let me know if you are interested in some  classes as soon as possibly.  There is no wait as you will immediately be signed up unless the class is filled and no space available.  

Call quickly to make sure we can accommodate your wishes of preference.

Our Mission

The mission of Camp Corral is to transform the lives of children of wounded, disabled, and fallen military heroes by providing a unique summer camp experience.

The vision behind Camp Corral is one where kids, ages 8 to 15, are free to be kids, far away from the day to day challenges they face as military children coping with change and loss. The reality of a parent being deployed away from home for over a year is the norm for children from military families. And for 87 percent of Camp Corral's campers, a parent coming back injured, disabled or not coming back at all

is their reality. Over 80 percent of campers come from veteran families, where

resources are even more limited. Camp Corral is making a positive impact on these children and their families by fostering a positive change in the children’s lives

Camp is not just a fun week away home; it gives them the opportunity to build supportive relationships with others in similar circumstances, be challenged by new adventures, grow in their independence, and build resilience, all while enjoying "the week of a lifetime.

Our Heroes

Eleven is the average age of our campers, but our campers are far from average. Eighty-seven percent have a parent who is wounded, disabled, or fallen due to military service. Twenty-four percent of campers come from dual military families, and 52% feel that no one understands what it is like being a military child. Having one or both parents deployed and away from home for over a year is the norm for children from military families. The lives of military families have changed enormously since September 11, 2001. Unprecedented levels of deployment and the increased reliance on Reserve and Guard members mean that the number of American children with a parent who is a service member or veteran has increased dramatically. These children face unique challenges and make sacrifices beyond their years. They deserve a unique program like Camp Corral, which provides them with the opportunity to build emotional resilience in a camp setting.

Camp Corral has a major impact on each child, and also on the entire family unit. In addition to the joy and hope parents feel as the result of their child’s camp experiences, they are often able to reconnect as a couple and strengthen their relationship while their child is away.