The Creekside Veterans Club raised $10,000 for Hero’s Bridge Village.
“We are incredibly grateful for the Creekside Veterans Club’s generous donation,” said Molly Brooks, Founder and CEO of Hero’s Bridge. “This donation will go a long way towards transforming The Village from cottages into homes for our veterans.”
The club’s mission, much like Hero’s Bridge’s, is to help aging veterans in need. While they may be small, with only 52 members, that doesn’t stop them from making a major difference in our veterans’ lives and the community. Club members, both men and women, represent every branch of the armed forces. Nine members served during the Vietnam War. The club’s youngest members served during Desert Storm.
In 2023, club president Brian Schires canvassed club members for fundraising ideas, and a group member shared their experience with silent auctions. Schires pulled together a hard-working committee, guided by the remarkable leadership of Jeff Hormann, to stage the auction before the end of the year. “We asked talented residents of the Creekside community and went to local businesses for donations of goods and services. In the end, we had an impressive list of 57 items,” said Royster.
This list included resort stays at Massanutten Four Seasons Resort and the Inn at Willow Grove; a Beer Passport with passes to four local breweries and another passport to local wineries; one dinner for eight guests prepared by a local chef in the home of the auction item winner; wind chimes, birdhouses, and feeders from Wind River, a photography package from Sarah Shelley Photography, golf course packages; local artwork donations; and more.
Residents had a sneak preview of the items before bidding began. “During a Friday night social at the community clubhouse, we displayed the items so people could see what appealed to them. The silent auction was also advertised in the local community newsletter,” he said.
The silent auction was held during the season of giving at the community holiday dinner at the Brass Cannon Restaurant, located at the Stonewall Golf Club in Gainesville. Over 100 people attended the event and gave generously.
The club leadership will be holding the funds until Hero’s Bridge Village is built. They plan to grow this figure with money raised from future events. Funds will be used to help furnish the Village cottages.
The Hero’s Bridge Village will be a first-of-its-kind community dedicated exclusively to aging veterans to lift our aging veterans out of substandard living conditions and social isolation.
The proposed site of the Village is within the town of Warrenton. The Village’s 44 cottages will address the severe need for affordable housing and permanent supportive services for aging veterans in Fauquier County, Virginia, and the surrounding region.
Hero’s Bridge is grateful to the Creekside Veterans Club that raised $10,000 for the Hero’s Bridge Village and for the people and organizations that help advance our mission, to improve the quality of life for veterans aged 65 and older.