FORT CARSON, Colo.---The local community has donated tens of thousands of dollars so far this year through the Warrior Family Community Partnership to augment programs that support Soldiers and their Families, according to the installation donation coordinator.
With gifts ranging from money to Girl Scout cookies and professional sports tickets, the Front Range communities have given about $80,000 in the first half of 2010, said Master Sgt. Andrew Clark Sr.
"There are a lot of programs in which the Army serves the Families and their (Soldiers), and the government doesn't necessarily designate funding (for some of those programs)," he said. "(The WFCP) pulls the community together with the military and helps us to better understand the needs of our Soldiers. These donations help them very much."
The donations go to programs like Army Emergency Relief and the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, but about two-thirds of the items and money donated go to programs for wounded warriors, he said.
"The local community sort of gives back to the wounded warriors, the Soldiers having financial hardships and organizations to assist them, such as (Directorate of) Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation," Clark said.
The donations program exists at installations across the nation, and the Department of Defense regulates it, Clark said.
Before a donation can be accepted, it must be reviewed by the Staff Judge Advocate's Office and then voted on by a board of directors. Donations worth $50,000 or less can be approved at the installation level; donations worth more than that must be approved at the Army or Defense Department levels, he said.
The board also votes on which program or unit could most effectively use the donation, Clark said.
Col. Robert F. McLaughlin, garrison commander, and Col. Patrick L. Fetterman, chief of staff, 4th Infantry Division, head the board of directors. It is comprised of representatives from brigade-sized units and separate battalions that don't fall under a brigade located at Fort Carson, Clark said.
The WFCP held a social event at its new location, Alternate Escapes, May 21. Clark said the socials are a forum to explain the donations process to community members and that the WFCP is designed to streamline the process for community members who want to -support Soldiers and Families.
"Everybody wants to help," he said. "They just want to get through the red tape and say 'here, give this to the Soldiers; they deserve it.'"
Clark said he processes up to 10 donations a month, and that the community never seems to tire of supporting troops and their Families.
"I think what the community has done to help these Soldiers has been phenomenal in the short while that I've been in the seat," he said. "It's touching one; it's touching many.
"It's a partnership. This community in Colorado Springs is probably one of the best communities that I've seen in my 23.5 years in the Army. They give back so much."
For more information, call Clark at 526-0423.
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