Dogs trained by professionals for veterans who have served honorably
Vets Helping Heroes mission is to provide the financial support for assistance dogs trained by professionals for veterans who have served honorably and active duty military personnel injured during service in the U.S. Armed Forces. Assistance dogs provide independence and service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In addition, they are a source of much needed enjoyment as beloved “family members” – running with children, providing comfort for spouses, and the security of knowing that they can even provide such services as predicting an oncoming seizure.
Charlie Morecraft proudly supports VetsHelpingHeroes.org
A letter from Charles R. “Charlie” Morgenstein, Esq. / Executive Director
VETS HELPING HEROES is a charity founded by WWII Veteran and POW, Irwin Stovroff. After his incredible wartime experiences, Irwin finished his education, married, started a family and had a successful career in the furniture industry. When he retired at age 75, he began volunteering at the local Veterans Administration Medical Center helping to get Vets all of the benefits to which they were entitled. When he discovered that the Veterans Administration did not get government funds to provide service dogs of any kind, and that all dogs were funded by private donations, he started this charity with the single goal of purchasing quality-trained dogs for wounded Vets who needed them.
Now 93, Irwin continues to work tirelessly. His life has been the subject of an award-winning independent film, The Gift of Life; and the basis for a fictionalized treatment in book form, “An Extraordinary Life – Gone to the Dogs”. He has been featured on “The Sean Hannity Show”, “The Bonnie Hunt Show” and “Inside Edition” among many television spots. Irwin tells his story to everyone who will listen, urging anyone who can to give money so that we can try to stem the tide of wounded Vets who are suffering from both physical and emotional injuries, including Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Assisted by a Board of nine other professionals, many of whom are retired military (one of whom, Mel Pollack, spent six years as a Prisoner Of War in the infamous “Hanoi Hilton”), Irwin is leading the battle to make everyone aware that our Vets are facing a crisis. We are losing 22 Vets a day to suicide alone.
Vets Helping Heroes has raised over $4.5 Million during its short existence, and has used that money to investigate and approve multiple dog-training facilities which Vets Helping Heroes has sponsored to place over 125 dogs with Vets in need.
The VA has spent lots of money “studying” whether service dogs can assist Vets with PTSD. While the VA is studying, Vets Helping Heroes already knows that dogs can, and do, help save lives and give fulfilment and independence to Vets with PTSD and other injuries. We are moving full speed ahead to try to make sure that every Vet who can benefit from one can receive a properly-trained service dog appropriate to his or her needs. We hope you can help.
For further information, please visit our website at www.VetsHelpingHeroes.org and watch the short version of “The Gift of Life” in the lower right-hand corner of the Home page.
