Thursday, March 31, 2016

Team Hope For The Warriors Newsletter: March


If you were not chosen for the Marine Corps Marathon lottery you can still claim your bib through Team Hope For The Warriors! Also, we still have bibs available for the TCS New York City Marathon.

For Team Members in North Carolina register for the following Run For The Warriors Races: 

Below is the 2016 Team Hope For The Warriors schedule: 
  
April
4/2-8 Team EVA Suffolk County, Long Island, Various locations

May
5/6 Monumental Mile, 7pm in Lewisburg, PA
5/14 11th Annual Run for the Warriors, Jacksonville, NC*
5/21 Run of Valor, Murphysboro, IL, More dates and locations to come! 
5/29 2nd Annual Memorial Day Run For The Warriors, Tampa, FL*

June
6/5 7th Annual Big Apple Run For The Warriors, NYC*

July
7/4 5th Annual New Bern Run For The Warriors, New Bern, NC*
7/4 Oakdale Chamber of Commerce’s Firecracker 5K, Suffolk County, Long Island
7/23 Airborne Tri Team’s 5K Run/Walk/Shadow Run, Suffolk County, Long Island
7/24 Panasonic NYC Tri, New York City    

August
8/21 7th Annual Sunset Run For The Warriors, Shelton, CT*

September
9/25 6th Annual Harmon Meadows Run For The Warriors, Secaucus, NJ*

October
10/16 3rd Annual DMV Run For The Warriors, Fairfax Station, VA*
10/23 7th Annual ASA Sponsored Run For The Warriors, Chicago, IL*
10/31 Marine Corps Marathon, Washington, DC*

November
11/6 TCS NYC Marathon, New York City
11/12 9th Annual Long Island Run For The Warriors, Lindenhurst, NY*

*Event is handcycle friendly
Registration sites to come for each event!

Fundraising Tip:
Share this story with your supporters:

Sgt. 1st Class Victor Medina joined the US Army in 1994 and served until 2012. He deployed three times—once to Afghanistan and twice to Iraq.

His biggest challenges today are cognitive. Victor lives with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), which he obtained when his vehicle was impacted by an IED while on patrol in Iraq. He endures day-to-day challenges that most people wouldn’t think twice about in their daily lives.



Congratulations to the Team Hope For The Warriors Members who participated in the United Airlines Half Marathon!
We had participants from all over the country and even a few who traveled internationally to run with the team and support our nation’s heroes with an incredible fundraising effort!

Team EVA: Every Veteran Appreciated

From April 2-8, 2016, Eva Casale, will be running 7 marathons in 7 days to raise funds and awareness for Hope For The Warriors! She will complete 184 miles, running in honor of a different service member for each mile. Eva is starting and finishing each marathon at different Suffolk Federal Credit Union locations.

How you can get involved?
Donate: Support the military community and Eva’s incredible efforts!

Register to Run with Eva: You do not have to participate in all 7 of her 26.2-mile runs, but you can pick a day to join her for the last 7 miles of her run. All runs take place in Suffolk County, Long Island.

Hope For The Warriors is inspired by Eva’s dedication to support military families and we would love to see the community encourage and support her as she takes on this impressive challenge!

Program Information:

Charity Navigator:
For the 5th year in a row, Hope For The Warriors® has received a four-star rating on Charity Navigator. This exceptional rating, achieved by only 5% of the nonprofits they evaluate, highlights Hope For The Warriors® financial responsibility to the service members, military families, and families of the fallen we support. Team members can continue to ask people to donate towards fundraising goals with confidence! We invite you to view their latest evaluation of our efforts on the Charity Navigator website.

A Warrior’s Wish®:
This year, Hope For The Warriors will grant 9 wishes to support service members, veterans, and military families. The nature of these Wishes will vary in scope from business, fitness, financial, and outdoor-related. The enrichment process will continue long after the Wish is granted to promote stability within the lives of these heroes and their families. As the Wishes are granted we will share the stories in the upcoming newsletters. Learn more about A Warriors Wish

For more information please contact Steve Barto at sbarto@hopeforthewarriors.org.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Series:
The Rock ‘n’ Roll race series has teamed up with everydayhero as their official fundraising platform. You can now run in any Rock ‘n’ Roll event and raise funds for Hope For The Warriors! Every race participant will be asked if they want to fundraise on behalf of their favorite cause during the race registration process. When you register and are asked to choose your charity, pick Hope For The Warriors® and you will automatically be given a Rock ‘n’ Roll everydayhero fundraising page!  

Run For The Warriors®:


Save the date for the 2016 Run For The Warriors® Race Series:
  • April 23: Inaugural Charlotte Run For The Warriors, Charlotte, NC 
  • May 14: 11th Annual Run For The Warriors, Jacksonville, NC
  • May 29: 2nd Annual Memorial Day Run For The Warriors, Tampa, FL
  • June 5: 7th Annual Big Apple Run For The Warriors, New York, NY
  • July 4: 5th Annual New Bern Run For The Warriors, New Bern, NC
  • August 21: 7th Annual Sunset Run For The Warriors, Shelton, CT
  • September 25: 6th Annual Harmon Meadow Run For The Warriors, Secaucus, NJ
  • October 16: 3rd Annual DMV Run For The Warriors, Washington, DC
  • October 23: 7th Annual ASA Sponsored Run For The Warriors, Chicago, IL
  • November 12: 9th Annual Long Island Run For The Warriors, Lindenhurst, NY

Stay tuned for the 2016 Run For The Warriors® Race Series Registration sites, www.runforthewarriors.org.

Representing the Team:
Be sure to shoot us an email with your race schedule and where you will be wearing your Team jersey. Each time you wear your jersey, you help our mission to restore self, family, and hope. Feel free to share photos and special stories too!


Important Links For Social Media:
Twitter When you tweet be sure to use #TeamH4W

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

The Daily Challenges of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)


Sgt. 1st Class Victor Medina joined the US Army in 1994 and served until 2012. He deployed three times—once to Afghanistan and twice to Iraq.

His biggest challenges today are cognitive. Victor lives with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), which he obtained when his vehicle was impacted by an IED while on patrol in Iraq. He endures day-to-day challenges that most people wouldn’t think twice about in their daily lives.

“I used to be an avid reader, but I can’t read the same way I used to. There was a time I couldn’t read at all. Then, I could read mechanically but couldn’t comprehend. I would have another student read a book and put it on a CD for me to listen to.”

Victor has to be proactive about planning ahead or he gets distracted with daily tasks.

“When putting up curtains, if I don’t lay out the tools in a neat row in the order that I’ll use them, I know I’m going to mess up at some point.”

Victor and his wife, Roxana
His memory, speech, and walking are also affected by his TBI. And he realizes it affects more than just himself—it impacts his family life, too.

“My wife understands [my challenges] and we talk a lot. When it comes to house chores, I have come to accept that I have to be supervised. Roles in the house have changed. I used to handle the finances before and now I don’t, but I compensate in other ways. I do the laundry at home. She works full time and I try to do things that make her happy because it’s going to take the weight off her shoulders.”

Victor is adamant about accepting his challenges and making the best of his situation, sharing that message with others. He explains that many survivors don’t know they’re entitled to certain accommodations because of their TBI.

Victor worked with a counselor while going to school for his Masters in Rehabilitation Counseling. They were able to determine what accommodations were needed during his studies in order for Victor to succeed.

“People are hesitant to ask for help because of the stigma. Accommodations are not taking advantage of the situation, but are very important for the community to know about. TBI is different for everyone.”

Victor stresses the importance of setting goals every day. Many times he gets overwhelmed and it reflects on his behavior, but he and his family have learned to laugh through it to do the best they can.

“Making goals is important when you have TBI. Set daily, attainable goals early in the day. Some things don’t get accomplished, but at least you accomplish one thing. If you do your best, you won’t be disappointed.”

Because TBI is so unique to each individual, Victor doesn’t want his community to feel sorry for him or pretend they know what he’s going through. Instead, he is open about his challenges. He sees it as his responsibility to advocate for others with TBI.

“No one should be afraid or ashamed of their condition—just do the best you can with it. We have to be outspoken about our conditions. There’s nothing that’s going to make a difference for me, but I can make it better for others with TBI.”


Victor currently lives in San Antonio with his wife and caregiver, Roxana.