Area veterans group receives $35K grant

A statewide, Lehighton-based nonprofit that assists combat veterans on their return home recently received a $35,000 grant.

Pennsylvania Outdoor Veterans secured the funds from the Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Foundation, a nonpartisan charity whose endowments benefit mainly Pennsylvania organizations.

In a February news release, Ryan Bowman, Pennsylvania Outdoor Veterans founder, said the grant will enable his organization to reach more veterans, providing recreational activities to past service members struggling with trauma from duty.

“We have 400 veterans — including 92 families — on a waiting list for services and programs,” Bowman said. “This gift will enable us to plan and deliver programs for many more of them.”

A combat veteran himself, Bowman established Pennsylvania Outdoor Veterans to address veteran’s high suicide rates and struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.

“We want to meet veterans’ need for adrenaline-inducing physical and psychological outlets, redirecting that positive energy into an antidote for the negative experiences of combat and service,” Bowman said.

“The object is to offer a chance to engage in shared, goal-directed activities to accomplish tasks and develop a sense of camaraderie.”

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 2019 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, 13.5% of suicides committed in 2017 were veterans.

That figure does not take into account current service members, or former National Guard or reserve members who were not active duty.