Thank you for your steadfast support for the families of our nation’s Fallen Heroes, and the program that cares for them - the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors.
When a death occurs and a service member is lost, TAPS is there to wrap the family in a warm blanket of comfort and care, with resources and support provided by an organization with two decades of experience in meeting the needs of grieving military families. The countless ways you find to help America’s Family humbles me and inspires us. Thank you for volunteering at our events, sharing our mission, and giving so generously.
TAPS achieved unprecedented success in 2014 because of donors like you. We raised over $9M and connected with over 50,000 surviving family members through Military Survivor Seminars for adults and Good Grief Camps for children; providing case work assistance and connections to community-based care; operating the 24/7 National Military Survivor Helpline; and offering nationwide peer-to-peer emotional support. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, these life-changing services are available for those grieving the loss of a military loved one.
Since ringing in the New Year, TAPS has welcomed thousands of grieving military family members to seminars, camps, retreats and care groups around the country. Over Memorial Day alone, TAPS welcomed over 2,000 participants to the 21st Annual National Military Survivor Seminar and Good Grief Camp. Your heartfelt contributions have made all of these healing moments possible.
Through your dedication, kindness and generosity, we have been there for survivors of all ages and relationships as they transition from grief to hope, and we thank you. The continuing support of all our donors makes a lifetime of difference for grieving families and loved ones as they gain healing from others who share their journey. TAPS is able to walk the path of grief with our survivors for as long as that journey takes because of your support.
With heartfelt gratitude,
Grieving families often cannot see a future in the first, life-changing moments when they learn they have lost a loved one. When that loss is from suicide, the bewilderment and isolation of their grief all too often creates barriers to sharing their story and healing. TAPS provides a compassionate place that welcomes these new members of America’s Family to tell their stories and pledges support, comfort and companionship for their grief journey.
In 2014, Sonya Dunson's husband, SFC Zerick Dunson, died by suicide. He was also survived by daughters, Zyasia and Zyona, and son, Damien. The family was hesitant to reach out to TAPS in the beginning but first met Bonnie at the White House Halloween event in October 2014. The Survivor Care Team continued to reach out to Sonya over the next few months and eventually matched her with a peer mentor. Sonya spent many hours sharing with her mentor, but the children were still grieving and seeking support.
NBA referee Scott Foster organized a military appreciation fundraiser event for TAPS at Glenelg High School in January 2015. The event honored the life of SFC Dunson and concluded with a presentation to the Dunson family of a special game ball with the image of their Fallen Hero. The support of students and those who attended the tribute event wrapped the Dunson family in a warm feeling of acceptance.
When spring rolled around, the Dunson family was beginning to emerge from their grief, but decided to attend their first National Military Survivor Seminar over Memorial Day. They longed to meet and talk with others who shared their same heartbreaking loss. In fact, Sonya says she felt “great relief” to finally be at the Arlington, Virginia event with other families affected by suicide.
Both daughters also attended the event and found a home and new friends at their first Good Grief Camp. This year’s event, sponsored in large part by a New York Life Foundation grant of $1,150,000, paired Zyasia and Zyona and other surviving children with a military mentor to be their buddy for the weekend. In addition, New York Life Foundation provided volunteers to help staff the Good Grief Camp for the entire weekend, helping to ensure that all the children in attendance had an amazing experience.
The full impact of the TAPS National Military Survivor Seminar and Good Grief Camp was realized in the days immediately after the camp. Zyasia, who had never been able to visit her father’s grave at Quantico, realized she was not alone. She was not different from other children and there were many through TAPS who stood beside her in a time of loss and suffering. On the way home from the Seminar, the Dunson family stopped at Quantico and, for the first time, Zyasia visited her father's grave.
TAPS is profoundly grateful to New York Life Foundation for supporting the Good Grief Camp, Scott Foster for his support of TAPS and to all our volunteers and staff who offer hope and healing to survivors. The Dunson family is but one example of the resources and programs that TAPS uses to uplift struggling families with caring compassion.
USAA recognizes that their members face unique lives that start with a pledge to protect our nation’s freedom at any cost. When that cost becomes the ultimate sacrifice, USAA is committed to standing with the families of the fallen by supporting TAPS.
The 2015 Bowl-a-thon took place over a rigorous three days in March with over 4300 participating bowlers across 39 lanes. Bowlers in the event rolled their way to a whopping $250,000 donation to TAPS.
Selected for the first time in 2015 as a USAA charity partner, TAPS is honored that USAA has selected us again for 2016 as a beneficiary of all Bowl-a-thons at their headquarters and regional offices across the country.
One of the most important ways to expand awareness of TAPS is to tell our story. Raising awareness of the vital programs and resources that positively impact the families of our nation’s Fallen Heroes is uniquely linked to the individual stories of our survivors. We thank TAPS Ambassadors such as Tom and Sharon Chisholm, who, for the past several years, have proven that they do more than just tell the story, they help make it possible.
For the last two years, the Chisholms have done more than support TAPS. By hosting a benefit dinner featuring survivor speakers, they helped give voice to survivor stories of loss and hope. Major General and Mrs. Mark Graham shared the harrowing story of losing two sons—one in combat and another to suicide. Shalan Webb, surviving spouse, recounted the aching loss of losing her husband in an IED explosion in Iraq in 2006 just two months after the birth of Mary, their daughter. Shalan found a place where she could connect with other surviving spouses when she attended the Alaska Widows Retreat in 2011.
Tom and Sharon Chisholm, as well as being some of TAPS largest individual donors, have helped raise a two-year total over $250K at their annual Ridgewood event. In addition, their generous funding is partially responsible for the creation and support of the Jersey Shore Care Group, which launched in June 2015. The Chisholms have, in this way, provided a safe space for local survivors to come together to share and to listen - a safe place to tell their stories.
Through partnership with Telos Corporation, Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the Washington Capitals, Washington Wizards, and loyal fans who support sales, the Courage Caps program raised more than $148,000 this year. TAPS has been the beneficiary of sales for the custom designed Courage caps for four years and is proud to announce our extended partnership in this program for the 2015-2016 season.
In 2013, Telos expanded their generous support of TAPS to include the funding for creating our Courage gear. Monumental Sports & Entertainment Foundation then designs, produces, markets and sells the gear online and at Capital and Wizard games with all proceeds benefitting TAPS. The value of the Courage Caps program exceeds monetary donations by also increasing awareness of the TAPS mission. It highlights the courage exhibited by the grieving military families TAPS supports as they pick up the broken pieces to find hope and healing. The program has grown each year and we are thrilled to continue this win-win partnership next year.
TAPS volunteers go above and beyond to donate their time and energy in countless ways to support grieving military families. While we have many general volunteers who deserve our gratitude, we especially want to shine the spotlight on the 395 Good Grief Camp Mentors who already stepped forward in 2015 to help the children of Fallen Heroes. These currently-serving or prior service military members volunteered to work one-on-one with children at Good Grief Camps held at regional and national seminars and stand-alone Good Grief Campouts across the country. Many travel locally, but some come from as far as Turkey, Germany and even Pakistan to volunteer with TAPS children.
Representing the active and reserve components of each service, as well as the National Guard, mentors spend an average 40 hours a year as a tangible example that the military still cares for the children of the fallen, even after their loved one is gone. Each acts in a "battle buddy" capacity, supporting a child in grief work and therapeutic play for the duration of camp. More than half of our mentors return for multiple years and almost 25% have developed powerful relationships with their mentees and ask to be paired with them again.
Good Grief Camps are a place where children find comfort, gain a sense of belonging, and learn that they are not alone. While some of these children return year after year, others are just now finding the courage to share their stories of devastating loss. By year's end, we expect to have 700 mentors trained, vetted, and paired with our nation's smallest heroes. TAPS is deeply grateful for the over twenty thousand hours that Good Grief Mentors invest annually in America’s Family. Their participation positively impacts the life of a child forever and each hour they volunteer helps children feel that they--and their grief--are recognized, valued and supported.
In 2015, the Colorado Celebrity Classic celebrated its tenth anniversary. Through its several annual events-- the Songwriters Showcase, the Saluting our Fallen Heroes Dinner Concert, the CCC Golf Tournament and various special events--the organization has donated more than $3.2 million to TAPS. It has become the largest private funding source for TAPS.
Founded by Bo and Lynne Cottrell, the Colorado Celebrity Classic has earned a stellar reputation marked by its efficient use of contributions, their large number of volunteers, the gracious attention given to guests, and the overall fun of the events. A new addition, the Memorial Day Show with local musicians and dancing, is likely to become an annual event, due to audience demand.
Monies raised through the Colorado Celebrity Classic this year will be used to support the Good Grief Campouts and the upcoming TAPS National Suicide Survivor Seminar and Good Grief Camp for Young Survivors in Colorado Springs in October 2015.
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