What is your organization’s mission?
Did you ever wonder how hard it is to have a loved one who is a member of the United States military deployed overseas in a dangerous foreign country? Think of the parent with young children whose spouse has been deployed. What happens when the everyday household repairs and maintenance arise that they might have depended upon their spouse to take care of? A broken water heater, leaky roof, flooded basement, backed up plumbing, etc. Well, that is exactly what Heroes Supporting Heroes (HSH) is all about!
The mission of Heroes Supporting Heroes (HSH) is to meet the basic life needs of our military service members and their families through seeking to bear one another’s burdens with everything from technical trades to hard-working individuals wanting to help others while maximizing the impact to our local communities. We are a 100% volunteer organization.
The mission of the Heroes Support Network (owned & operated by HSH) is to connect the active duty, reserve, retired & veteran military communities with the business and civilian communities locally. The Heroes Support Network staff works hard every day to centralize and provide helpful information to both the military and civilian communities in a personal way through cultivated and trusted relationships, working with local & national businesses in Southwestern PA to increase the number of offerings available to our military community and their families.
What sets your nonprofit apart from others?
There are over 200 organizations in the Pittsburgh region that support veterans. We are one of the only organizations that supports actively serving families in addition to veterans. We also are 95% volunteer and use less than 2% of our donations to fund anything other than projects that directly support our mission annually.
"Vince and the Proffitt Brothers Foundation® literally saved the event this year by becoming the presenting sponsor. This was the first year we named the event in honor of someone and we could not be prouder to have it be Greg Proffitt."
Who created Heroes Supporting Heroes and how was it launched?
Our organization was founded by John Lee and his wife Sheri. John Lee, President and Co-Founder, Heroes Supporting Heroes, Chief Master Sergeant (Retired), United States Air Force, Civil Engineering Manager. He served in the military for 25 years with 7 tours to Iraq and Afghanistan. John is a member of Crossroads Church, and has lived in Findlay Township all of his life. His desire to help people that are in need is what fueled his ambition to start this non-profit organization, where he leads a team of volunteers that have the right skills to help with home repairs for people in need.
John and his wife Sheri, have been a part of the community in one way or another through VFW, American Legion, Pittsburgh Airport Chamber of Commerce, PTA, Angel Tree, and many other services. John and Sheri have two children in West Allegheny school, and plan to be here many more years in the West Allegheny area. John is looking forward to serving others as it will be a blessing to give back to the community that he has called home for so many years. Being a part of a team that is willing to put others before themselves feels like home to John. After being in the military most of his life he knows what it means to work together and accomplish a mission and to value a team.
How many years have you been doing this?
Operation Santa started 9 years ago with 50 military kids in attendance and 100 civilian kid volunteers. This year we will host over 1,000 military kids with the help of over 300 civilian kid volunteers.
How many families do you believe you’ve supported since you started?
Between Christmas Morning support for families who have been identified by local command as needing some help for giving their family’s Christmas, surprise Christmas Eve trips to those with a loved one on deployment and the actual event, in 9 years I estimate we have touched at least 10,000 military and veteran families with this event.
What has surprised you the most?
The civilian kids who volunteer. This event all started for me when my sister's classmate Brendan Looney at the US Naval Academy was KIA as well as his roommate a few weeks later. (Brothers Forever book tells that story.) Their class asked people to do random acts of kindness in his memory and post them to a blog that they later would gift to his widow. My 2 boys - then in 1st and 3rd grade hosted a free lemonade stand with 2 of their friends. They made signs and little cards that told the heroic story of Brandon and asked people to comment on the blog if their RAK impacted them in any way. Nobody was stopping so the moms went up the road a bit and flagged cars down and asked them to stop and talk to the boys. People started stopping and getting out of their cars to take photos. We followed the blog and people who had stopped sharing how the random act of kindness inspired them to do a RAK for someone else. That experience for my kids inspired them to want to do more. We came up with the idea for the Kids Club and ran it through our family business 3 Rivers Wealth Management Group. The goal was to teach the next generation to recognize and appreciate service to our country. We do projects all year long to support our local installations and military families. Operation Santa being the largest. We started Operation Santa and had kids in the club earn $25 by doing something for someone else - like carry the garbage cans up for a neighbor or rake leaves or do extra chores around the house. They then were paired with a military child’s Santa wish list and selected and shopped for an item and wrapped it. The Kids in the club run the entire event (with the help of parents) - when the child they bought for visits Santa Claus the civilian kid is called over and the families meet. The civilian child watches their present be opened and the joy they are able to give to another child. It is a life changing experience for many.
There were years where we could not find a space or the funding. One year we had to put out the cancellation. I was prepared for the military reaction but not for the civilian one. I got email and texts from so many kids and families saying it is their favorite day of the year, they look forward to it more than Christmas for themselves. My own boys cried and asked what the military families were going to do that relied on us. They told me we couldn’t quit, we had to find a way. And we did that year, and every year after. While the military families are so appreciative of what we do, my biggest surprise and joy comes from how many in the younger generation truly experience and understand the joy of selfless giving.
What are your biggest challenges?
Funding and space. Every year the attendance multiplies and it gets harder and harder to raise funding because support for the military in corporate America has all but vanished. Every year we need a bigger space to turn nobody away. We are in old Kmart or Department Store spaces. It is very difficult to find a space that will let us use it, where the utilities are turned on and have functioning rest rooms and adequate parking. Also, the larger it gets, the harder it is to get the event setup and thousands of wish lists sorted within two weeks. Everything has to be loaded in and out via tractor trailer and into storage and then pulled back out. It is a massive effort.
How has the Proffitt Brothers Foundation® helped you?
Vince and the Proffitt Brothers Foundation® literally saved the event this year by becoming the presenting sponsor. This was the first year we named the event in honor of someone and we could not be prouder to have it by Greg Proffitt. He exemplifies all of the amazing men and women who serve our country and we serve at Operation Santa every year.
When and where is this year’s event and how can people donate?
December 11th in McMurray, PA. People can donate here for business tree sponsors and individual wish list adoptions: https://heroes-supporting-heroes-pittsburgh-bridges.square.site/product/adopt-a-santa-wishlist/98?cp=true&sa=true&sbp=false&q=false
What would you tell someone thinking about donating or volunteering?
Only 1/2 of 1% of our population raises their hand in service to this country and who are up to sacrificing their life. Their children and spouses may not wear a uniform but they serve our country as well through their amazing sacrifices. Our country owes them a debt of gratitude we cannot repay, but we can try and show our appreciation. Most family readiness funds are non-existent with the cutting of military budgets across the board. Family support is always the first thing to go. Our community can do better than some Dollar Store trinkets. We have so many people who say our event is the first time their family ever felt their service was truly appreciated. That means everything.
