2015 Recipients of Donation Made in Honor of Nick’s Birthday
As a way to celebrate and honor Nick’s birthday, the NSW Foundation has committed to make a donation every December to a deserving organization. This annual donation serves as a way to further the work and mission of organizations our Foundation believes provide important services to our current and future leaders, as well as bless the lives of those that the organizations serve. This year we are excited to announce that we are making two separate donations in honor of Nick, and the 2015 recipients of this donation are the Newnan Veterans of Foreign Wars Post and Still Serving Veterans. Nick was passionate about giving back to our country’s veterans, and this passion was exemplified in his support and involvement with Alaska’s Healing Hearts, a non-profit organization enabling disabled military veterans to participate in outdoor adventures. We are proud to continue his support for such deserving individuals with this year’s donations.
The VFW was founded by veterans to secure rights and benefits for returning servicemen as many returned wounded and sick and there was no medical care or veterans’ pension for them. Since then, the VFW’s voice had been instrumental in establishing the Veterans Administration, creating a GI Bill, the development of the national cemetery system and the fight for compensation for Vietnam vets exposed to Agent Orange and for veterans diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome. Annually, the more than 1.7 million members of the VFW and its Auxiliaries contribute more than 8.6 million hours of volunteerism in the community. To learn more about the National VFW visit their website, and to learn more about the Newnan VFW Post please visit their website.
Still Serving Veterans is dedicated and passionate about helping Veterans and their families receive all the benefits and services they have earned, connecting them to other vital Veteran support resources within their community, and significantly expanding their career opportunities. Since 2007, SSV has served over 16,000 Veterans and secured over $202 million in cumulative new benefits, services, and salaries for their Veteran clients. They have earned national recognition as a center of excellence for Veteran job placement and reintegration, won a national “Seal of Distinction” Award from the Call of Duty Endowment for effective and efficient Veteran employment assistance, were awarded the Better Business Bureau’s Torch Award for Ethics, and were a finalist in the Huntsville Chamber of Commerce Small Business Awards for Nonprofits. For more information on this great organization please visit their website.
In 2013, our birthday recipient was Volunteers of America, which helps provide transitional housing for homeless veterans in Pensacola, Florida – a part of Florida Nick got to know well during his years stationed at Hurlburt Field. For more information on last year’s recipient you can visit our blog here.
In 2014, our birthday recipient was the Newnan High School Athletic Association. This donation assisted the school in replacing the turf behind home plate on the baseball field. Athletics were a large part of Nick’s life in his four years at NHS, as were the coaches and team members he played alongside. In addition to creating friends that lasted his lifetime, the NHS athletic department helped shaped and nurtured his work ethic, team-player mentality and leadership skills.