Dear Reader:

Yesterday Ben called me… more excited than I have heard him in a long time! It just made me so happy to hear him excited about anything- too many times his calls are fraught with confusion and/ or perplexity over his mobile phone and loss of memory how to work it… making him feel isolated. It is, rarely the phone where the problem lies.

Ben told me he is being remembered …(and for someone who fights a constant battle daily, trying to retain his memory) he was overwhelmed with gratitude. I was so thrilled !

The director of Wellmore had come to his room to talk about his veteran status, his book ( sweet Libby ordered and sent 9 copies to him to distribute in the two libraries there) and an invitation to a special day ( today) with lots of activities to honor their in-resident veterans….The first event being a bus trip over to Patriot’s Point for remembrance programs offered there, then a special lunch, followed by an in- House honor ceremony recognizing each Wellmore veteran individually!

I started telling Ben about this

new caddie program ( started in Scotland) I saw last week on television and immediately thought of him. ( Called Caddie School for Soldiers) The program also exists here in the United States.

The rationale behind the program centers around the emotional struggles soldiers returning home experience. Because soldiers are dedicated to the ideal of self-sacrifice, when they return to a world defined by the opposite-personal gain, they really don’t know how to fit in and becomes strangers to themselves. And when you are a stranger to yourself, you quit believing in yourself.

The Caddie School for soldiers program was created to help veterans earn back their belief and worth in themselves…. so they can carry on in life with the measure of dignity they deserve.

*** Think about it! Ben is surrounded by golf courses that he can’t play on because they are private to property owners only. But with this program veterans who love golf can help others again with their own expertise! Caddying! A win-win!

So until tomorrow… “In this world of give and take, there aren’t enough people willing to give what it takes! “

Let’s help those who were willing to give what it takes ( at the expense of their health) by giving them a chance to give back from their own unique passion-golf!

Today is my favorite day! Winnie the Pooh