Thanks to Sport&Health and Volunteers of America Chesapeake (VOA), more veterans will be under a roof this holiday season.
Sport&Health, with locations in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., teamed up with VOA’s veteran services division to put on the “Called to Care” fitness challenge at all 23 Sport&Health locations. On Saturday, November 9, 2013, participants competed in small events and raised funds for VOA.
“These events [were] very simple,” explained Kevin Boyle, Sport&Health’s director of the Explosive Performance Program, which was in charge of the events. “They’re things everyone should be able to do — push, pull, throw, run and jump. It’s something very inclusive. Parents could do it with their kids, or athletes could do it, or your average weekend warrior can participate.”
Donations were also collected at Sport&Health’s front desks, and donations will continue to be collected through November 30, 2013. Once the money goes into VOA’s hands, the organization will work to get homeless veterans off the streets.
According to a December 2011 survey cited on VOA’s website, 67,495 veterans are homeless on any given day.
“What we do is really work with veterans to help them achieve housing stability,” said Rob Malone, the chief business development officer of VOA Chesapeake. “We work with them and walk with them down the path to make sure they find the right housing fit for them. Typically, families that come in are on the verge of homelessness and we help them to not walk over that cliff. Or they’ve recently become homeless and we want to quickly get them back in housing.”
The issue of homeless veterans was one close to heart for Sport&Health and its CEO, Mark Fisher, who said it fit within the club’s larger priority of community service. “As a locally-owned company, it is important that the proceeds benefit people in our local area,” said Fisher. “Because we serve a significant military market around our clubs, we are always looking for ways to give back to those that serve our country.”
This year was the second year Sport&Health held the “Called to Care” fitness challenge in partnership with VOA. About $20,000 was raised last year. Sport&Health will match donations (up to a certain point) through the end of November 2013.
“The mission of what we do is creating stories and changing lives of people who, for most of the folks we serve, are either at the point of feeling as if there is no hope and they’ve tried their last option, or being very close to that,” said Malone. “When you’re a safety net program like us, and challenged by federal funding cuts, when you have an organization that takes initiative like Sport&Health has done, it’s tremendous for us, and inspiring to the people who work with us.”
Donations matched by Sport&Health can be made until November 30, 2013 at https://www.changecause.com/charity/319/volunteers-of-america-chesapeake/drive/11/sporthealth-and-voa-chesapeake.
Donations can also be made here: http://www.calledtocarefitnesschallenge.com/.
By Ashley Scoby
