BRATTLEBORO-The Building Bridges Veterans Initiative started out in Northampton, Massachusetts in 2015 as a monthly social get-together for veterans — a chance to enjoy a dinner with their comrades.
It has since grown to 17 sites around New England, including Brattleboro, and has served 115,000 meals, along with a big helping of friendship and a message to those who served that they are not alone.
At the monthly meal in Brattleboro on March 25 at American Legion Post 5, Building Bridges received some affirmation for its work in the form of a $2,500 check from Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) Chapter 1 in Rutland.
Rev. Christopher Carlisle, executive director of Building Bridges Veterans Initiative, said the organization is run totally by volunteers.
“It is an initiative that the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts underwrote to address veteran social isolation, depression, risk of suicide, and many who suffer from PTSD, but essentially to build community,” he said.
Carlisle said the people involved with launching Building Bridges recognized that the most effective way for veterans to break the feeling of isolation is to spend time with other veterans, and that the best way to do so is over a meal with their peers.
Norm VanCor and Dr. Robert Tortolani, Vietnam War veterans who organized the monthly Tuesday Morning Veterans Coffee Group at American Legion Post 5, said that getting involved with Building Bridges was a natural extension of that other outreach. Post 5 has hosted monthly dinners on the fourth Wednesday of the month for the past couple of years.
Lawrence Gold, VVA Chapter 1 vice president, said he only recently became aware of Building Bridges, but the more he learned about it, the more he wanted to get his organization involved.
“Our chapter is about helping other nonprofits that are either helping people who can’t afford food or find a place to live if they’re homeless,” said Gold during a brief ceremony before the meal. “Today, we donated to the Building Bridges Veterans Initiative to help it grow and to continue doing what it’s doing.”
Carlisle said the donation is enough to open a new Building Bridges site and fund its operation for a full year.
About 50 veterans, most of whom served during the Vietnam era, and their family members, enjoyed a meal of pot roast, liver and onions, mashed potatoes, vegetables, and salad, with chocolate and carrot cakes for dessert.
Those who stop by to eat are asked for a donation to help cover the cost of the meal, but no one is turned away for lack of money.
“The sense of gratitude by veterans for these meals is amazing,” said Carlisle, adding that the feeling is mutual among the people who volunteer to cook and serve these dinners.
For more information about Building Bridges, visit buildingbridgesveterans.org.
This News item by Randolph T. Holhut was written for The Commons.