Bob Woodruff Foundation Grant to Fund Homefront Support Program Development A $62,732 grant from the Bob Woodruff Foundation will be funding the development of the Homefront Support Program at Cooking with the Troops. In addition to development, the grant covers two special events focused on the wounded and some support for Operation Fight Post Holiday Blues. The Bob Woodruff Foundation provides resources and support to injured service members, veterans, and their families so they can have successful futures. They do this by investing in national and community-based programs that connect troops to the help then need, so that both physical injuries and the hidden injuries of war are healed. "We founded Cooking with the Troops so that we could do more than just food events," says Bob Miller, President of Cooking with the Troops. "With the economy in the shape it is in, we estimated that it would take years to get the new programs off the ground. With this grant, we are not only able to get this major part of our operations in place, but be able to use it to begin helping our troops and their families in months instead of years." "We are thrilled with the concept and mission of Cooking with the Troops. Food is social; cooking is therapeutic and unites individuals. This is a wonderful opportunity to bolster camaraderie; expose wounded warriors to careers in the culinary arts and management, while simultaneously adding nutrition and affordable meal instruction to the lives of injured troops and their families,” said René Bardorf, Executive Director, Bob Woodruff Foundation. The grant provides money to cover the development costs of the program, as well as a prototype event and a follow-on event that will incorporate the lessons learned from the first event. The events are not only intended to provide instruction in nutrition, cooking, and food safety, but will also expose the participants to the range of careers available in the culinary arts and management. In addition, the grant provides funds towards Cooking with the Troops' Operation Fight Post Holiday Blues in January. Among other things, the grant money fully funds the ingredients budget for a special meal for the wounded, family, and caregivers at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. As part of the grant, Cooking with the Troops is covering all administrative and related costs associated with the grant and the development process. "The importance of this grant cannot be overstated," states C. Blake Powers, CEO of Cooking with the Troops. "Starting any new major program requires large amounts of time, money, and other resources and as a new charity those resources are extremely hard to come by. This grant not only gives us those resources, but it opens the doors to other partners to help us expand this program, develop our culinary career transition and frontline support programs, and expand our educational and assistance efforts." Cooking with the Troops is a 501(c)(3) public charity dedicated to supporting U.S. and Allied Troops, their families, and caregivers through special food events, culinary careers, front line support, and homefront support. About the Bob Woodruff Foundation The Bob Woodruff Foundation provides resources and support to service members, veterans and their families to successfully reintegrate into their communities so they may thrive physically, psychologically, socially and economically. Through a public education movement called ReMIND.org, the Bob Woodruff Foundation helps educate the public about the needs of service members returning from war - especially the 1 in 5 service members who have sustained hidden injuries such as Traumatic Brain Injury and Combat Stress, including Post Traumatic Stress, Depression and Anxiety - and empowers communities nationwide to take action. Across the country, the Bob Woodruff Foundation collaborates with other organizations and experts to identify and solve issues related to the return of service members from combat to civilian life and invests in programs that connect our troops to the help they need - from individual needs like physical accommodations, medical care and counseling, to larger social issues like homelessness and suicide. To date, the Bob Woodruff Foundation has invested over $8.6 million, reaching more than 950,000 service members, support personnel, veterans and their families nationwide. For more information about the Bob Woodruff Foundation please visit www.ReMIND.org
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Posted
Jan 19 2011, 11:25 PM
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