Sentinels of Freedom Honored at Pentagon

Mike Conklin, National Director of the Sentinels of Freedom Scholarship Foundation,, accepted a $15,000 grant at a Pentagon ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 10. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, USMC, recognized the organization's innovative efforts to help severely wounded veterans rebuild their lives and realize their full potential.

"The Sentinels of Freedom is a unique program that demonstrates what extraordinary results can be accomplished by ordinary people," Gen. Pace said during the ceremony. "The military is grateful to local communities for taking these veterans in and providing them with so much."

Judged among other organizations in an annual competition sponsored by Newman's Own, Fisher House Foundation and Military Times Media Group, Sentinels of Freedom was named "Best Entry." Standouts are recognized for ingenuity in programs that benefit servicemen and servicewomen and their families.

"It's tremendously rewarding to work with these heroic individuals who have given so much for our country," Conklin said, addressing attendees at the ceremony. "The Sentinels program is successful because everyone wants to help."

The foundation relies on teams of volunteers in the scholarship recipients' hometowns or new communities to act as mentors and ensure that the five key components of the program are addressed: housing, adapted transportation, career opportunities, education and training, and ongoing mentoring.

Ten veterans have been placed in communities in three states, and Sentinels of Freedom plans to award another 40 scholarships by the end of the year, thanks to an overwhelming interest in mentor team leadership, valuable national sponsorships - namely a relationship with RE/MAX International - and recently awarded foundation grants.
 

Copyright © 2007 RE/MAX International Inc. 8/27/07