Mission Continues Blog - Page 5 of 25 - Stories that need to be told

Three Encouragements For The New Administration

December 1, 2016

transitionmeeting Spencer Kympton, president of The Mission Continues and seated at far right, joins other veteran leaders on December 1, 2016, in Washington, DC.

Since our founding, we have always been a nonprofit, non-partisan organization dedicated to bringing together veterans and innovative organizations to create transformational change for communities in need all across the country. The past nine years of service have inspired countless opportunities to learn and grow as a nonprofit uniquely focused on empowering veterans. In that spirit, we joined nearly 30 organizations serving our veterans and military families this morning to share our experience at the first outside meeting with members of the Presidential Transition Office focused on veteran support.

Opening My Parachute and Landing on Solid Ground

December 1, 2016
By Derek Auguste, Fellow Alum

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I joined the U.S. Army so that I could gain valuable skills and give my newborn daughter a better life. After enlisting, I soon discovered an incredible sense of purpose and realized I wanted to stay as long as I could. Mentoring young soldiers and seeing them grow brought me great pride. I still remember the days when I trained my soldiers how to parachute out of airplanes — how to make the jump, despite their fears, and trust their parachute would open.

By 2015 however, I realized that what my daughter needed most was my presence in her life. Of my eleven years of service, I had been away from home for nearly half of it, so I made the decision to hang up my uniform and return home to Miami.

Thanksgiving with The Mission Continues Family

November 29, 2016

The Mission Continues family extends all across the country. And while we spent the Thanksgiving holiday apart, we were together in spirit. Through the power of pictures, we invite you into our homes to share the essence of family, friends and togetherness. From big feasts, to small gatherings with friends, to Turkey Trots and snuggling with pets, we had just about every kind of thanksgiving out there.

#GivingTuesday: Empower Veterans

November 29, 2016

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#GivingTuesday is upon us and we’re offering three ways to empower veterans to find new missions here at home with a gift to The Mission Continues:

Make a financial gift: Donate to The Mission Continues and create more opportunities for veterans to serve again. Our programs have a well documented track record for strengthening veterans’ reintegrations to life after the military. And you can trust that your donation will be handled in accordance with industry standards and put to good use. Charity Navigator, one of the leading charity watchdogs, rated The Mission Continues a 4-star organization, it’s highest rating, including a perfect score in financial transparency.

Putting the Giving in Thanksgiving

November 23, 2016

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year to gather with friends and family, take some time off from work, and stuff our faces with food. But of course, in true Mission Continues fashion, we are always here to help people in our communities so that everyone can enjoy Thanksgiving. Our platoons are giving thanks in the best way possible — by following sentiment with action.

In Seattle, A New Platoon with a Mission

December 9, 2016

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The Seattle 2nd Platoon is one of The Mission Continues’ newest platoons. The Platoon and its Platoon Leader Matt Moroge, reported for its first service project in Marysville, WA at the Quil Ceda Tulalip Elementary School recently during our Veterans Day service campaign. The school’s student body is 95% Native American, so it was only fitting that this project tipped its hat towards the strong Native American culture that makes up the Pacific Northwest.

A New Take on Veterans Day

November 16, 2016

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Veterans Day weekend was a welcomed long weekend for many, but for veterans at The Mission Continues, it was an opportunity to serve with greater impact. Veterans Day is typically a holiday to reflect and honor those who have selflessly given their service. As we look forward, we recognize it’s also an opportunity to engage with our youth and this nation’s future generations in their potential for service.

In cities across the country, we gathered together to do service projects large and small, with other veterans, partner organizations, and civilians. Many of our projects were designed to help youth and create lasting change, as we never lose sight of our vision to inspire future generations to serve.

With over 40 cities reporting for duty, we can’t share every bit of awesomeness with you, but here’s a sampling of the kick ass projects our platoons accomplished to help today’s youth.

Learning and Growing at the Platoon Leader Summit

November 10, 2016

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This past week Platoon Leaders and Team Leaders gathered in Philadelphia for our annual Platoon Leader Summit. Over the weekend they learned skills from experts and each other that will help them create kickass service events, build relationships in their communities, and cultivate a thriving platoon.

Our Platoon Leaders are dedicated to making meaningful and sustainable impact in the communities they serve. They all have different leadership styles and different perspectives they bring to the table, and each person has something to help their peers learn and grow.

What It Means to Be Today’s Veteran

November 7, 2016

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Here at The Mission Continues, we have our own way of honoring Veterans Day. As a veteran service organization whose mission is to empower veterans to serve again in their communities, Veterans Day is one of our biggest opportunities to show the country that veterans can make a positive impact in cities for youth, for the environment, for other veterans, and everyone in between. To this end, we are mustering hundreds of veterans nationwide to serve in all kinds of service projects this Veterans Day weekend, and we invite civilians to come serve alongside us too.

Time to Shine, Hampton Roads, Renee Foster is Here!

November 4, 2016

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We are happy to welcome Renee Foster, our new City Impact Manager for Hampton Roads in Virginia. As a Navy veteran and former Platoon Leader, Renee is already familiar with The Mission Continues family. But we want to introduce her to you too. After interviewing her, we’ve put together a little Q&A about Renee.

Describe your city for someone who has never been to it. What do you