Wounded Warrior Project

Wounded Warrior Project is a charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services and events for wounded veterans of the military actions following September 11, 2001. It operates as a non-profit organization.

The organization has partnered with several other charities, including the American Red Cross, Resounding Joy and Operation Homefront. WWP was founded in 2003 in Roanoke, Virginia by John Melia. Melia had been severely wounded in a helicopter crash while serving in Somalia in 1992. He assembled backpacks distributed to injured veterans at the former Bethesda Naval Hospital and Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Wounded Warrior Project initially operated as a division of the United Spinal Association of New York which adopted WWP as a program in November 2003. The WWP continued to support injured service members by providing them free with backpacks filled with comfort items.

In September 2005, The United Spinal Association granted $2.7 million to WWP to develop into a stand alone charity with its own identity and programs. The intent was to expand its services from providing immediate comfort items to providing longer-term support for returning wounded veterans; such as-compensation, education, health care, insurance, housing, employment, etc.

The WWP Backpacks program remains a central activity of WWP, with more then 70,000 backpacks the organization hasdistributed in 2018.

Wounded Warrior Project has many different programs that they offer. You can go to the WWP website and find out all about this organization and how much they are doing for our injured veterans. There are many points of contacts and connections on the WWP website.

   Benefits-they have many different programs.

   Combat Stress Recovery

   Community Partners

   Family Support

   Independence Program

   International Support

   Operation Outreach

   Peer Support

   Physical Health and Wellness

   Policy and Government Affairs

   Warrior Care Network

   Warriors to Work Program

There is a program called Warriors Speak which is a group of wounded veterans and caregivers who share their motivational stories of service and sacrifice with the public to raise awareness for the needs of this generation’s injuredmilitary service members, their families and caregivers. WWP share some of the un-told stories of what it’s like on the other side.

Another symptom that many veterans deal with is combat stress. One of these that many of us hear about is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Symptoms can include disturbing thoughts, feelings, or dreams related to the events, mental or physical distress, difficulty sleeping and changes in how a person thinks and feels.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. The symptoms of the injury can vary. Mild or moderate TBI symptoms can include mood changes, trouble with concentration, headaches, difficulty with sleep and reduced motor coordination.

The transition from service member to civilian can be a difficult one. More than half of warriors say that they do not have close relationships with others, you may feel alone, lost or hesitant to reach out to somebody for help.

Based on this the veteran outreach program was developed. Every year, the WWP reaches out to veterans, caregivers andfamily support members to check in, provide updated information on programs and services and to let them know that WWP is here whenever they need us.

I suggest that if anyone is interested and would like to participate and/or support the Wounded Warrior Project then get involved in one of the great programs they have to offer.