Buying a meal here this month will help local wounded warriors adjust to being home again

The nation’s first president adorns the Purple Heart for a reason.

George Washington created the medal in 1782 to recognize soldiers who displayed bravery in battle. The medal didn’t take on its current meaning until 1932 when Gen. Douglas MacArthur led the effort to revive the medal to recognize soldiers who were wounded in battle.

More than 1.7 million wounded American warriors have been awarded a Purple Heart since. It’s an appropriate reminder as the nation looks ahead to Veterans Day on Nov. 11 that those who offered up blood for freedom need to be remembered, and in many cases helped.

Mattison’s Riverwalk Grille is teaming up with the Wounded Warrior Project throughout November as the restaurant group continues with a new “Round up for Charity” program in which customers have the option to round up their checks, with the proceeds benefiting area veterans.

The Wounded Warrior Project is best known for helping severely wounded combat veterans live a normal life by making their homes disabled friendly, but the organization has come a long way since.

Wounded Warrior knows each veteran is different and has different needs, whether physical, mental or something as meaningful as helping veterans transition to civilian life with new skills.

And sometimes, it’s just an event where veterans can come together and, “It’s kind of like coming home,” said Javier Torres, a U.S. Army veteran wounded in Afghanistan in 2005.

“Vets in general can get together and enjoy the moment,” Torres said. “If you are one of those guys like I was, you know, isolated for some quite some time where I stood away from everybody, it’s much more fun to be around a bunch of guys who understand you.”

Torres’ first interaction with Wounded Warrior was at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C., where he was recovering from his wounds. It was a simple offer of new clothes, of which he had none due to the length of time he was recovering.

“They do so much more than people think,” Torres said.

Alfred Cox is a U.S. Army veteran with 17 years in the service and four combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. The brotherhood of the Wounded Warriors organization is important to Cox, and so are the services. Wounded Warriors helped him launch a new career in photography and film.

“I would tell veterans if they feel lost and don’t know their next step, check out Wounded Warrior and see all of the services from family counseling to job placement to anything you could possibly think of. Just reach out and make that first step.”

The first step is the key, according to John Vann, outreach specialist for Wounded Warrior and a U.S. Army veteran.

“That first step is the key part of our commitment to our warriors to empower them and give them the tools to be successful in the community,” Vann said.

The “Round up for Charity” program launched in September and focuses on local charities.

Typically, Mattison’s also will do a celebrity bartender night and host some unique events specifically to draw in people for the chosen charity.

“I believe that it is our duty as business owners to support organizations that help the under-served populations and those in need,” siad Chef Paul Mattison. “We are honored to give back to the community that has given us so much.”

To learn more about the charitable effort, visit mattisons.com.

For more information on the Wounded Warrior Project, visit woundedwarriorproject.org.