Raising the spirits of those who served
As a resident of the Armed Forces Retirement Home (AFRH) in Washington, D.C., William Cruice appreciated the Feb. 22 Operation Comfort Warriors donation to the home. But as a lifetime member of The American Legion – and one of the founding members of Morvay-Miley Post 524 in Ocean City, N.J, -- Cruice was proud to see the organization’s work up close.
The donation of gift packs comprised of toiletries and OCW caps was part of a combined $2,500 donation that went to the AFRH and the Washington, D.C., VA Medical Center. While at the AFRH, Legion family members also took the time to meet with the residents and take a brief tour of the facility, which is located on more than 200 wooden acres that include a nine-hole golf course and two stocked fishing ponds.
“It picks up their spirits,” Cruice said of the donation. “And as a member of a (Legion) post in the hinterlands, if you will, you hear about this stuff happening. I’m a witness to the fact it is happening.”
Corrine Robinson, an AFRH resident and member of Legion Post 70, which was chartered at the home in 2004, shared Cruice’s sentiment. “It makes me very proud,” she said. “I’m sure (the residents) are overwhelmed.”
Each of the packs contained items such as soap, shaving cream, razors, cotton swabs and other toiletries. The items weren’t in travel-size containers, said OCW Director Bruce Drake, because “this is their home. We wanted to give them something they’d use in their own home.”
The donation is “huge from the facility’s perspective because our residents mean the world to us,” said Charles Hollings, executive support officer for the AFRH’s Office of the Chief Operating Office. “They’re veterans. They’ve served their country. When folks come to visit and show their appreciation to veterans, it always means a lot – not only to the residents but to the staff, too.”
