Grace Matz
2015-2016 National Hospital Ambassador
Show Your Appreciation for Our Military and Make the Connection this May!
May is Military Appreciation Month and there are several days in May that honor our military, including Military Spouse Appreciation Day, Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day. This month, weâll take time to pay tribute to those who have made so many sacrifices for the freedoms we enjoy. Whether itâs saying âthanksâ to a military spouse, active-duty service member or placing flags on the graves of our veterans and participating in memorial services, make sure you show your appreciation for all they do (and have done) for us.
One way to do this is by visiting those who arenât able to take part in public events and ceremonies. Contact a medical facility and ask if thereâs any way our volunteers can help out. There may be a patient who would like to talk about a comrade or a family member they lost. Maybe the facility would like help with a Memorial Day service. Perhaps the veteran needs to know theyâre not alone in the challenges they face.
In addition to Military Appreciation Month, May is also National Mental Health Awareness Month. I encourage you to visit http://maketheconnection.net/, an online resource designed to connect veterans, their family members and friends, and other supporters with information, resources, and solutions to issues affecting their lives. The site can be overwhelming as there are more than 600 videos to choose from! You can search for videos by:
- Selecting the veterans service
- Selecting male or female
- Selecting the era in which the veteran served
- Selecting if the veteran was exposed to combat
There are also videos for:
- Family & Friends: http://maketheconnection.net/family-friends
- Clinicians: http://maketheconnection.net/clinicians
- Active Duty: http://maketheconnection.net/active-duty
- National Guard & Reserve: http://maketheconnection.net/national-guard-reserve
Watch and share these stories of strength, resilience and hope. Please know if you are a veteran or a friend/family member of a veteran, you are not alone.
Thank you, our volunteers, for all youâve done for our veterans, active-duty service members and their families this year. Iâve received so many wonderful reports, promotions, pictures and newspaper articles of the amazing things you did this year. Your presentations at conferences and events, information booths and guest speakers have been inspiring! Our volunteers are THE BEST!!!
It has been a wonderful experience being your National Hospital Ambassador and I hope I provided you with some ideas and suggestions you could use or pass on to others. Keep up the great work and continue recruiting new volunteers, working with our youth and serving our veterans.