When Bob Dole was in Walter Reed Medical Center for treatment and released in 2012, Senator Elizabeth Dole founded the Elizabeth Dole Foundation.
During the hours and days Senator Dole spent at the medical center with her husband, she came to know many of our wounded warriors and their families. This led her to start the foundation to lift up the caregivers and family members of the wounded warriors. Part of her mission is to raise awareness.
Today's post is dedicated to raising awareness for the caregivers and their families.
I discovered just because a veteran looks like he or she is coping with life, there may be pain they are hiding. It's not always obvious the internal and external pain our veterans and their caretakers deal with every day.
In the U.S. there are more than 5.5 million caregivers. In a recent interview on TV, some were asked what they needed most. I heard over and over they needed time off. They love their spouse (or whatever family member they are caring for), but they need some time away.
Is this something we can do? Can we offer to stay with the veteran while the caregiver goes to a movie? Takes a weekend away?
Maybe we can cook a meal for these families, buy a tank of gas, or take them for ice cream.
Some of the caregivers feel isolated. That's one good thing about the Elizabeth Dole Foundation. They connect caregivers with others. They provide support on many different levels.
In South Carolina, there are only 49 caregivers signed up with the foundation. There are five Hidden Hero Cities:
Charleston, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
North Charleston, South Carolina
Sumter, South Carolina
These statistics tell me we need to help spread the word to caregivers. You are not alone. We are here to help, and many of us are ready to stand by you and offer support.
Check back for part two of Caring for Military Families.
Jackie, thank you for letting people know about this organization to support military caregivers. My father was shown great...and well-deserved...appreciation for his sacrificial service to our country, being a World War II amputee and POW. However, I always felt my mother needed support and recognition for all she provided behind the scenes as the person who encouraged and cared for my father...the details of living with a disability others didn't see. She was a woman of faith, strength, and selflessness, as caregivers are called to be. On this Memorial Day Weekend, thank you for highlighting the needs of the loved ones who care for our physically and emotionally wounded military heroes!
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