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Battle Buddy Response Team

Nonprofit Organization

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BBRT helps local Navy veteran

The spirit of Christmas was alive and well in Hagerstown, Md., on Saturday December 19, 2020  when a few dozen volunteers and companies like; Labors Office Furniture out of Hagerstown MD, Alpha Pro Flooring, Coca-Cola out of Hagerstown MD, Troop 58 out of Boonsboro MD, Lowe’s in Waynesboro PA and in Hagerstown MD,  American Metal Roofing out of Mansfield Ohio, pitched in to help a local Navy veteran.

Thanks to the efforts of the Battle Buddy Response Team (BBRT) to organize the event, the veteran has new and improved living conditions including new flooring and decking. An electrical upgrade and new hot water heater were completed at an earlier time.

To top off the very successful weekend, BBRT raised money to purchase the veteran a new stove on December 20, 2020.

This is just one of many stories that shows the need that exists among veterans—and the quick response of the Battle Buddy Response Team. They do not have red tape to work through. As soon they receive a call for help, they jump into action and do whatever it takes to help.

BBRT is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing suicides among veterans and their families. Team Members are ready to deploy 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year across the United States to perform welfare checks when a concerned party reaches out. 

Statistics show that an average of 22 veterans commit suicide every day, a staggering number that demonstrates the need for organizations like the Battle Buddy Response Team. The 501(c)(3) charity does not charge for its services, but relies solely on donations and sponsorships.

Please consider making a contribution so that the Battle Buddy Response Team can continue the work they do. All funding goes toward supporting veterans and helping to make their lives better.

Learn more through their website: https://battlebuddyresponseteam.org or call (855)777-BBRT.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

When shopping for Christmas gifts this season, please keep Battle Buddy Response Team in mind. There may be people on your list who would truly appreciate having a donation to Battle Buddy Response Team made in their name, rather than receiving a tangible gift. This is a perfect option for people who “have everything” or who want to pay back the men and women of our armed forces who are struggling during these difficult times.

Making a donation to Battle Buddy Response Team is a great way to show friends, family members, co-workers and even clients, that you are thinking about them during the holiday season. It also sends a message that you are mindful of the importance of caring for those who served.

Battle Buddy Response Team provides a number of valuable services to veterans and their families, ranging from help with mental health to advocating for better conditions. Team Members are ready to deploy 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year across the United States to perform welfare checks when a concerned party reaches out. 

Our work has a powerful impact not only on the people that we work with directly, but on the entire community. It is only through the support of individuals and corporations like you that we are able to strengthen our programs and develop new ways to help our veterans.

On behalf of the members, staff, and volunteers at Battle Buddy Response Team, I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincerest appreciation for your support, and wish you and yours a blessed and safe holiday.

Merry Christmas!

Giving Tuesday

The holiday season is upon us, but that doesn’t stop our veterans from needing the services of organizations like the Battle Buddy Response Team. 

We’re busy changing and improving lives, but we still need your help. 

Giving Tuesday is the perfect time to give the best gift of all—a donation so that we can continue to provide aid to veterans who have served and sacrificed for us.

With your help, we can continue to carry out our mission of ‘Stopping and Preventing All Veteran Suicides.’ 

The members of the Battle Buddy Response Team are ready to deploy 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year across the United States to perform welfare checks when a concerned party reaches out. 

Learn more through their website: https://battlebuddyresponseteam.org or call (855)777-BBRT. The 501(c)(3) charity appreciates donations to cover their gas to travel when deploying a team. 

 

Make a donation, and use the hashtag #Thankful #GivingTuesday and #BattleBuddyResponseTeam

Gratitude For Our Service Members and Veterans

 

November is usually a month that everyone looks forward to as a time to give thanks, meet with family…and eat! With many of our family gatherings canceled or reduced this month due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, our celebrations will look different. However, we can still reflect on our blessings on this special day that was first set aside by George Washington.

When speaking of this country’s blessings during his radio address in 1988, Ronald Reagan mentioned “peace and abundance in this land that God has kissed.”

“We will give thanks for these and one thing more: our freedom. Yes, in America, freedom seems like the air around us: It’s there; it’s sweet, though we rarely give it a thought. Yet as the air fills our lungs, freedom fills our souls.”

No matter what our holiday looks like this year, we are still blessed by our freedoms. Among other things, Thanksgiving is a day we can pause to give gratitude to the men and women who serve or served to defend our way of life. 

Whatever your holiday looks like this year, we hope you can find many things for which to be thankful. And we wish you all a safe, blessed, and happy Thanksgiving!

COMPACT Bill for Veterans Passes Senate

Just before Veterans Day, the Senate passed legislation aimed at improving mental health care and services for veterans and troops, sending them to the president’s desk for final approval.

The package of bills, the Veterans Comprehensive Prevention, Access to Care and Treatment (COMPACT) Act includes nine parts intended to help prevent veteran suicides.

The latest VA veteran suicide data report from 2019 found that on average, about 17 veterans died by suicide per day in 2017. The data typically is delayed by about two years, making it difficult to determine whether efforts have made a significant difference year over year. More than 6,000 veterans died by suicide each year from 2008 to 2017, according to previous reports.

Since that data lags behind by about two years, advocates and lawmakers worry they won’t have a concrete grasp of how the pandemic has affected suicide rates for veterans—but they agree that the isolation and stress caused by the turmoil spreading alongside the virus likely won’t improve things and that veterans, troops and their families need more help now than ever.

Specifically, the COMPACT Act would:

  • Provide free crisis care for any veteran with emergency suicide symptoms;
  • Create a pilot program between VA and designated family or friends of veterans to share information on benefits and assistance;
  • Require an annual report on VA’s Solid Start program;
  • Establish an education program for veteran families and caregivers on mental health concerns;
  • Create an interagency task force on outdoor recreation for veterans;
  • Establish a policy where veterans who have not had contact with VA in two or more years are encouraged to come in for an exam to continue eligibility for emergency care not linked to their service-connected disabilities; 
  • Require annual VA police de-escalation and crisis intervention training;
  • Require a study of VA programs providing assistance to women veterans who are homeless;
  • Provide a report on locations where women veterans are using VA health care.

For more information on potential warning signs of suicide, click here.