Purple Hearts and Heroes exists to provide Deserving Veterans, Special Needs Children and Children of the Fallen the opportunity and ability to connect or reconnect with the outdoors through outdoor adventures. We encourage any veteran, special needs child, children of our fallen soldiers or gold star family members to apply with us. We will be in touch as soon as we can to follow up with you.
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Thank you for your interest in Walleyes For Wounded Heroes!
After retiring in 2012 I felt as though I had lost my purpose in life, for the previous 14 years the Marine Corps was my life, it’s all I knew. In August of 2012 I received a call from the founder of the Field of Dreams Foundation, Tom Dermody. Unbeknownst to me, Tom had received a recommendation from my good friend Jeremy Heid to contact me to see what Field of Dreams could do to help improve my outlook and morale. Tom called and offered me an opportunity to go to Canada with the Field of Dreams on an elk hunt with other veterans, which I graciously accepted. Tom and Jeremy were both hopeful this hunt would help me begin to deal with the everyday issues I was facing in my post-military life.
I cannot begin to describe what happened to me on this hunt. Something very therapeutic took place to say the least. Being around the other service members, sharing the stories and the camaraderie and getting back out into the woods was just what I needed. Fortunately I was able to harvest a couple of nice animals on this trip, but that was really just a bonus. This trip was about something way more important than hunting, it was about the healing and fellowship with other veterans. Many of the guys I met in Canada that week are some of my closest friends today.
Over the last couple of years I have been blessed to attend more hunts with the Field of Dreams Foundation, but not always as a hunter. I was able to accompany a few of the Marines who were with me the night of the blast back to Canada in 2013, that was an amazing trip I’ll never forget. Today, I continue to go on outings with the Field of Dreams as an ambassador for their program and to volunteer in any way they need me to. It’s really an honor and my duty to serve these fine men and women, these special needs kids and the children of our fallen soldiers in any way possible.
In 2014 I decided I could do more. So with help from Tom Dermody, the Field of Dreams Foundation and my friends and family, I founded the Purple Hearts and Heroes Foundation! Purple Hearts and Heroes was developed to provide deserving veterans, special needs children and the children of the fallen the opportunity and ability to connect or reconnect with the outdoors through outdoor adventures.
Please look over the rest of this website for ways you can get involved, volunteer, donate or apply to take part in a Purple Hearts and Heroes event. It takes an army, scratch that, it takes a corps to serve those deserving and I hope you will join us in our efforts!
Thanks for your time and consideration.
Respectfully,
Charles Brandon Bailey
USMC/GySgt Ret.
Contact Information
PURPLE HEARTS & HEROES FOUNDATION
PO BOX 1271
Florence, KY 41042
Call us: (910) 320-3932
Email: brandon@purpleheartsandheroes.org
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