Remember is More Than Just Dinner…
When we began FreedomSystem.org, the board foresaw the need for income to support programs. The original board initiated a bank account with $100 per family, covering initial expenses. This money was used to get a starter business card and pay for the website hosting fees. Then it funded paper products aiding Veterans in career training, leading to our yearly fundraiser, Remember.
We knew one fundraiser a year was sufficient, avoiding over-solicitation. But only once a year because we didn’t want to be “that foundation…” Hence, one a year!
“Speak Free-ly” Becomes “Remember”
Our very first event was called “Speak Free-ly,” I thought that I was being apropos and that this would be a carrying the weight of military reasoning. I mean… everyone had seen Top Gun, right?! Wrong!
“Speak Free-ly” which I meant for it to be more focused on the camaraderie of ideas and brother/sisterhood. Instead, our Speaker, was great, loved him there - and loved his speech, but looking back it was way too political for an apolitical organization! So the focus became politics rather than having fun and helping an organization grow and spread the word to Veterans. Which brought us to why we have the event: to “Remember” the reasoning behind the event.
Remember: Honoring the Legacy of Past, Present, and Future Veterans
When a military member gets out of the military oftentimes they are not equipped to be able to handle being a civilian again. The United States Military is great at creating soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines, but not so great at turning them into civilians again. Therefore a transition is usually in order to get acclimated to the civilian climate again. Oftentimes, though, the military does an awful job on this and it’s hard to do what you are asked in the manner of the way you were taught because of several factors (read more through these articles to understand better) and it just destroys the newly minted Veteran.
Remember starts out with a call to action and a prayer to make sure that we continue to glorify God and that His will be upon us that evening! We then start with libations! For an hour we break the ice with one another and learn who we all are. As the evening continues we feast! Our event has become synonymous with great dinners! The magical voiced musical guest Sam Brown & Co will serenade us through dinner. Dinner and music is always a highlight of the evening and this year is no exception, and cannot hardly wait for this to all happen again!
The Keynote is Worth Remembering
Moving forward onto the night - the emcees, Casey Hendrickson and Lauren Zeugner, will take over the microphones and push us into our keynote speaker! This year, Captain Chad Fleming (Retired), is going to take us into the military mind of a Ranger that never knows quit! The aptitude and the diligence of his riveting speech will take you on a trip without you losing a minute! Chad will take us right into some dancing and some raffling!
The event this year is located at the:
Northern Indiana Event Center:
21565 Executive Pkwy
Elkhart, IN 46514
Remember to Raffle
After the speaking event of the night, a small Q&A with Casey and Chad… the real fun starts! This is when we bring out the gun raffles, the 50/50’s, and the auction items, did I mention a band? “Doobieus” will be our dancing music guest and look forward to having them help us have fun and enjoy the company of one another! The gun raffles, which are threefold this year, will be there and we will have throughout the evening! In order to win the gun raffle you must be present to win.
It’s Closing Time
Last call and closing time will be played and then we all vamoose from the premises with the items that we have won in auction and in raffles! We will bid you adieu, and say goodbye until next year! And we know you’ll be back next year because of all the fun you have had this year!!
Remember the Memories
The end of the night won’t be swift, and it will still be fun, but we will clean up and move forward with our mission and keep Veterans looking into our camaraderie programs and bringing them together for those shared experiences that they need!
Don’t forget to read our articles often and when they come out and listen to us 24 times a year on our Podcast: The Common Veterans, on everywhere podcasts are listened to!
If you have questions, make no hesitation to reach out to us!
Until next time:
Sláinte
