The American Legion grant has provided a BBQ meal for the past six years thanks to the efforts of an Illinois Legionnaire and his wife.
Hap Zook and his wife Becky helped cook and feed barbecue to more than 300 wounded servicemembers and their families at Fort Campbell, Ky., last September. It’s an event that the husband and wife have been involved in over the past 15 years and made possible thanks to American Legion Operation Comfort Warriors (OCW) grants for the last six years.
Prior to OCW grants, the meal was paid out-of-pocket and by donations.
“We have been blessed with the OCW grants,” said Hap, a member of American Legion Post 79 in LeRoy, Ill. “It has made a big different with the funds from The American Legion and made this thing so much bigger and better. We have been able to put on quite a spread.”
The servicemembers and their families enjoyed homemade barbeque chicken, ribs, pulled pork, beans, coleslaw and cookies.
“We have met so many great people, great soldiers,” said Hap, whose effort has fed upward of 500 servicemembers and their families at a time over the years. “And with the families being there with the soldiers, it’s made it even more special.”
After serving the meal, leftovers go to families staying at the Fort Campbell Army Fisher House. “When we were done serving, we had all these leftovers,” Hap said. “And a nice lady that we have dealt with over the years from Fisher House came over and we were able to provide it all to her. She said, ‘This is great because I have families coming in today and I didn’t know how I was going to feed them tonight.’ So we loaded her up with all kinds of barbecue and sides. She was very gracious.”
The barbeque not only fed servicemembers, families and the Fisher House, even staff and officers from the soldiers recovery unit at the hospital came over to enjoy the meal. “We felt honored that they would show up,” Hap said. And three years ago, they fed an additional 75 soldiers who were headed out for field training. “Just some neat things have happened over the years from us being there.”.
Hap shared that he and Becky have continued to feed servicemembers and their families because “it's an honor to be among them. It’s just been so gratifying over the years to be able to do this,” he said, adding that they were named the “Warrior Barbecuers” by a company commander. “It’s kind of like going home when we go back down there.”
Before applying and receiving OCW grants, planning for the meal was difficult, as Hap never knew how much funds they were going to receive in donations or take from their own bank account. Now, they can plan to have more than enough food left over to feed additional soldiers and families at the Fisher House.
The American Legion OCW grants has made “it so much easier to plan and pull it off,” Hap said. “And we can provide them with good, quality barbeque because we are able to buy good, quality groceries and supplies. It’s just made a big difference and the relief of not having to question if we are going to have enough money to do it.
“We can’t say enough about The American Legion. (The OCW grants) have been phenomenal. We have financing, and we’re able to do this first class for the soldiers and their families.”
Learn more about OCW
The American Legion Operation Comfort Warriors program assists wounded, injured or ill active-duty and military personnel and veterans by providing morale-enhancing gifts to warrior transiiton units, VA and DoD medical care facilities, military installations, and 501©(3) and ©(19) organizations that are part of the American Legion Family or such nonprofit entities sponsored by an American Legion legal entity.
Visit legion.org/ocw to learn more and apply for a grant.
- Operation Comfort Warriors