Post 182 in Pryor, Okla., leads effort to provide snacks and other comfort items to Claremore Veterans Home.
American Legion Post 182 in Pryor, Okla., has been a longtime supporter of the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs’ Claremore Veterans Home. So when the post’s members recently learned that budget cuts had resulted in the home being unable to provide certain comfort items to its residents, they immediately went into action.
Through their own donations and support from the community, Post 182 was quickly able to provide snacks, drinks and other items to the veterans living in the home.
“We try to help to support the (home) as much as we can, helping them with bingo and things like that. One year we got a bunch of money raised and bought a bunch of blankets and took them over,” said Past Post 182 Commander Brian Ledbetter, who currently sits on the post’s executive board. “When we heard about the situation, we decided to get together and raise some awareness to some of the businesses and people around town so that they could make some donations and help with some of the basic items for the veterans over there.”
The post made a call to action via its Facebook page, asking for not only snack items, pop and coffee, but also basic hygiene products, socks and T-shirts. And its community stepped up to assist.
“The support is still coming in,” Ledbetter said. “We’ve had people come by and donate soda, chips, the things we had listed. People are showing up and bringing them. We’ll probably be making trips over (to the home) once or twice a week as we get items.”
The post also teamed with Zeffy, which provides free fundraising software to nonprofits, to create a QR code so people can donate money to the effort. American Legion Auxiliary Unit 182 is using the donated money to buy items needed by the home’s residents that were not donated.
“First and foremost, we’re all veterans. We support our fellow veterans – especially the ones in that facility, in nursing homes and in memory care facilities,” Ledbetter said. “Those are the ones from World War II, Korea, Vietnam. They deserve to be as comfortable as they can, so anything we can do to support them we are going to do and let them know they’re being thought of.”
Ledbetter spent 22 years in the U.S. Army, which included multiple deployments. So he knows firsthand what something as simple as a snack can mean. “I can kind of relate myself … with the care packages we would get,” he said. “It means a lot when you don’t have it, basic essentials and things like that. I think for us, we enjoyed serving, but we still feel the obligation to continue to serve to help other veterans as needed. It’s that’s accomplishment to know that when you’re asked, you can still step up and perform a service – especially for your fellow veterans.”
- Community