The Tee It Up for the Troops events at SeaCliff Country Club (Huntington Beach, CA), Vista Valley Country Club (Vista, CA) and Alta Vista Country Club (Placentia, CA) have joined forces to support the Warrior Foundation~Freedom Station located in San Diego, CA. The Warrior Foundation~Freedom Station assists four main groups of warriors: the seriously injured just returning home from war; those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury; those undergoing physical or occupational therapy, and warriors who have been medically retired and remain in our community. To serve this last group in particular, they pioneered a new approach and opened Freedom Station – a unique recovery transition center and housing facility that provides injured warriors with the acclimation time, guidance and resources to successfully make the transition from military service to civilian life.
In particular, the donation of $29,150 from the Alta Valley Country Club event was used to support Freedom Station and the Stand Tall: Modified Combat Boots for Warriors program. As mentioned above, Freedom Station is a unique recovery transition center and housing facility that provides injured warriors with the acclimation time, guidance and resources to successfully make the transition from military service to civilian life.
One of Warrior Foundation’s main program areas is quality-of-life items. They provide supplies to injured warriors that improve quality of life and provide added comfort during recovery. One of the most in-demand items they provide are modified combat boots with special zippers that can accommodate either prosthetic limbs or Intrepid Dynamic Exoskeletal Orthosis (IDEO™) braces. When warriors are recovering from battle injuries, nothing boosts morale like being able to stay in uniform. The uniform is deeply intertwined with the pride, privilege and soul of a warrior. It allows them to keep their military bearing. For amputees, new prosthetic legs and feet do not fit properly into combat boots, forcing them to wear other shoes that do not conform.
In what has become one of their most successful programs to date, Warrior Foundation-Freedom Station devised a way to modify combat boots to accommodate prosthetic limbs and IDEO braces. They custom-measure warriors, purchase boots, and then install zippers down the back of the boots so they can easily accommodate prostheses. This allows warriors to maintain an integral part of their identities by staying in uniform.
