Years ago, a trauma surgeon leaving his shift at the James A. Haley VA Hospital noticed a woman and her daughter sitting in the parking lot in their car. When he returned to work the next morning, they were sitting in the same spot.
A knock on the car window opened his eyes to a gap in care for veterans and their families. They drive from all over the country to be near their loved one, but often do not have the finances to get a hotel and pay for three meals a day.
That doctor called for help and Army retiree Jim Griffin and other members of the Military Officers Association answered the call for help, forming Operation Helping Hand in 2004.
Operation Helping Hand
Today, this group of about 100 volunteers, with the help of their sponsors, provide welcome kits to each family. The kits contain gas cards, gift cards to various stores, restaurant gift cards and more. Things to help make things a little easier for families when they arrive in Tampa.
“We take care of active duty and other veterans entering the James A. Haley Polytrauma and Spinal Cord Institute,” Griffin said. They have all suffered major traumatic injuries. “We try to ease the pain of these families trying to be near their loved ones.”
Social workers hand out the welcome kits when veterans arrive.
Related: Hillsborough Gets $1.65 Million to Expand Veterans Resource Center
“We have gotten hundreds of thank you letters over the years from those families,” he said. “They get to the VA and realize there is someone who actually cares about the families.”
The group started out hosting potluck dinners for the families at the VA. Now they have graduated to hosting large dinners with the help of sponsors.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, those dinners drew 300-400 participants on the third Thursday of each month, “We would even get the patients to come downstairs so we could honor them. We gave flowers to the spouses and children.”
In 15 years and 12 months, Griffin said, the group has honored a lot of military members. And there is no charge to the injured or their families for the monthly dinners.
The next dinner will take place Nov. 17 to celebrate Thanksgiving.
The group dinners got so large, they had to move out of the hospital. Luckily, The Embassy Suites near the VA hospital stepped up and offered space at a discount. “They have really bent over backwards to help us out,” Griffin said.
There is often a wait list, but anyone can make a dinner reservation by calling 813-771-6744 or reserving a spot online.
Getting help from the community
This year’s major dinner sponsors include the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, SOF Missions, Arma Global, CAE USA, Celestar Corp. and Booz Allen Hamiliton.
There are many other community sponsors, small businesses, corporations and associations that contribute to Operation Helping Hand.
In addition to the dinners and the welcome kits, Operation Helping Hand also sponsors an event each year to showcase veterans’ artwork. The event is called The Star-Spangled Art Exhibit and was held earlier this month in Ybor City.
The group also sponsors an annual golf tournament and an annual day of sporting clays to help raise money to find its projects for injured veterans.
