Columbia, USC veterans groups brighten day for Dorn VA patients, workers
Two local veterans groups took time out Friday to brighten the day and say thank you to health care workers at the William Jennings Bryan Dorn VA Medical Center in Columbia.
The My Carolina Veterans Alumni Council and the 9/11 Remembrance Foundation of SC delivered 600 gourmet cookies along with bottles of water to the health care workers and staff at Dorn.
The goodies served as a way “to thank them for the unwavering hard work and sacrifice to serving the veteran and military community during the COVID-19 crisis,” the groups said in a press release.
The University of South Carolina formed the Veterans Alumni Council in 2016 to engage not only USC alumni who are veterans and the student veteran population, but also support the local veteran and military community, said John Parry, the group’s chairman.
“So we were very excited to partner with a military and first responder non-profit, supporting the Dorn VAMC staff, while also supporting a local business during these difficult economic times.” he said in the release.
The cookies were baked by Chapin’s The Southern Gourmet, owned by Christie Richardson.
“We are extremely grateful for the sacrifice of the veteran and military community,” Richardson said. “We also have family in the health care industry, so we’ve seen the impact this has had on them firsthand.”
Dan Hennigan, a native New Yorker who founded and chairs the 9/11 group, said the gesture was “to show our deepest appreciation” to the health care workers. The group organizes the Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk each year in Columbia.
The walk and run in part honors the New York City firefighters killed by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center..
Tammy Finney, Dorn’s head of community relations and engagement, said the statewide hospital system has 2,800 employees “who have been working tirelessly around the clock to ensure our commitment to our veteran community maintains the level of support and service that they are accustomed to.
“We have a longstanding and strong relationship with UofSC and the 9/11 Remembrance Foundation of SC, and are very grateful for their support,” she said in the release.
Dorn recommends that if veterans have flu-like symptoms such as fever, cough, and shortness of breath, to call the center at (803) 647-5829 or Toll Free at (888) 651-2683 rather than coming to the hospital. Hospital officials also recommend virtual care options such as telehealth or My HealtheVet Secure Messaging.
They can find the latest VA information on coronavirus COVID-19 https://tinyurl.com/ts7mpd2.
This story was originally published April 24, 2020 at 5:08 PM.