Warrior Canine Connection Receives $100,000 Grant from DAV Charitable Service Trust
BOYDS, Md. – Warrior Canine Connection’s Mission Based Trauma Recovery program just received a most welcomed financial boost; DAV (Disabled American Veterans) Charitable Service Trust has provided the nonprofit with a $100,000 grant to help support the organization’s Mission Based Trauma Recovery (MBTR) program, whereby Warriors are enlisted in a therapeutic mission of learning to train service dogs for their fellow Veterans.
“DAV Charitable Service Trust is doing amazing work day-in and day-out to help improve the lives of our Veterans,” said Rick Yount, founder and executive director, Warrior Canine Connection. “We are so appreciative of receiving this support from them, as it will make an immediate impact by helping to support training, education and awareness of our programs.”
Mission Based Trauma Recovery was designed primarily as an intervention for combat Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress. The MBTR model harnesses the healing power of the Warrior Ethos and the human-animal bond to reduce symptoms of combat trauma whereby patients with combat stress train the dogs to assist another Veteran with invisible and/or physical wounds. The model provides recovering combat Veterans with a sense of purpose while they are in treatment and is designed to remediate their symptoms of combat stress, such as isolation, emotional numbness and re-experiencing.
“DAV has remained dedicated to fulfilling the needs of our nation’s veterans for nearly 100 years, and our Trust exists to assist other charitable organizations in their efforts to improve the lives of the men and women who served,” said Richard E. Marbes, President of DAV’s Charitable Service Trust. “It is our hope that through these funds, Warrior Canine Connection will accomplish that very goal.”
DAV Charitable Service Trust helps to fulfill a focused and noble purpose: empowering veterans to lead high quality lives with respect and dignity. Through an established, nationwide grant program, the Trust supports physical and psychological rehabilitation programs; enhances research and mobility for veterans with amputations and spinal cord injuries; benefits aging veterans; aids and shelters homeless veterans; and evaluates and addresses the needs of veterans in recent wars and conflicts.
To learn more about WCC or this grant, please contact Beth Bourgeois, Warrior Canine Connection, at beth.bourgeois@warriorcanineconnection.org.
