Lori Hastings on 'Paddle 4 Troops' photo courtesy Jeff Wenzel Lori Hastings and Susan Griffin, directors with the nonprofit foundation 'Paddle 4 Troops' were on hand Tuesday morning to describe their fundraising and community-service projects that support veterans and their families. Paddle 4 Troops was founded by Josh and Dwight Torres in 2011 as a nonprofit organization geared toward supporting local veterans through a fun and competitive stand-up-paddle board race. The foundation's annual Paddle 4 Troops event is held in September each year at Sears Landing Grill & Boat Docks in Surf City, North Carolina. The 'competitive' part of the paddle board races include paddlers who go all out in a 6 mile race, while the 'fun' race is just that a good time to be on the water enjoying the day knowing that your support is going directly to local veterans. In addition, Paddle 4 Troops hosts a silent auction and partners with business for additional fundraising activities.
Lori described the group's effort in supporting veterans at the Sgt. Eugene Ashley Center in Wilmington by providing their time and financial support to serve the vets meals who live at the center as a bridge to permanent housing. The foundation also supports NC-529 education accounts for children of veterans suffering from PTSD, the MARSOC Foundation on board Camp Lejeune, and a debt assistance program for veterans. In addition, three college scholarships are awarded each year which follow the student through college as long as they maintain a set gpa.
Visit the Paddle 4 Troops home page
Want to support the P4T paddle board race in 2019? Visit Paddle 4 Troops race page
Want to learn more about the Sgt. Eugene Ashley Center? ...Visit the site