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Veterans Day Weekend Activities

WISH for OUR HEROES granted its first wish 14 years ago on November 2, 2009, in honor of 1SG Thomas G. Wells, a career Marine.  The founder of WISH for OUR HEROES, Jeff Wells, served on active-duty and while deployed, he recognized along with his fellow soldiers, that a serious need existed within our military ranks.   There were so many great charities in existence, but the majority of them focused on specific groups or categories (wounded, etc).  There were no charities that focused on not only helping military members falling into these extreme categories, but also helping the average, hard-working military member experiencing struggles with basic needs.  WISH for OUR HEROES recognized the toll that war takes on families back home, and decided to create a charity to assist military families with basic necessities: food, shelter, transportation, child needs, medical expenses (not covered by the VA, Tricare, etc).  Small issues can spiral into larger issues, and larger issues can spiral into things like divorce, suicide, and those problems our military members face as a result of daily military life.

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When the charity started, the founders began taking donations at stoplights and collecting $1 at a time to assist our heroes.  Money was donated, and then WISH for OUR HEROES would utilize the funds to grant a wish and assist a military family.  Then, they would raise more money, and grant more wishes.  Over time, other people learned about the mission of W4OH and wanted to get involved. Those people began to spread the word, and with each wish, the W4OH network began to grow.  No money was spent on marketing… just a wonderful group of people who wanted to give something back to our heroes.  Now W4OH has a network of more than 400 volunteers across the country who have dedicated their lives to making sure our military families have what they need.

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Today, WISH for OUR HEROES is a national 501(c)(3) that grants wishes around the world. Through 2022, WISH for OUR HEROES has provided more than $30 million in assistance to our heroes, across all 50 states and 4 foreign nations (where U.S. troops are serving).   W4OH has partnered with many corporations to inch closer to its ultimate goal of granting one wish for every deserving military member.