For those of you who do not know or have not heard of the American Soldier Network, it is “ an all volunteer run organization dedicated to advocating for and assisting veterans of all eras 24/7 as well as our active duty military. We Praise & Promote Patriotism, Educate America on the needs of our Veterans and assist our heroes." This organization truly Walks their Talk!
This organization was started in1996. It was formerly known as Angels Within Inc. Over time the focus changed to be an all veterans outreach organization in 2005. "Our current focus is bridging the gap between America and our veterans, with our emphasis on the invisible wounds of war. We are losing between 22-40 of our heroes to suicide daily and that has to stop.” Founder Annie Nelson also went on to say why this is so important to her as a cause. “In today's busy times so few Americans have any connection with our veterans and military. Back in World War II, 16.5 million men and women served in our military, and our population was about 179 million folks, today we have 320 million Americans and only 1.5 (million) have VOLUNTEERED to serve in the BEST military in the world. Everything I do and we at American Soldier Network do is about bringing awareness to ALL that they do, welcoming them home, taking care of them here at home and making sure that no matter what their needs here at home are met! They are our heroes and deserve the very best we have to give!” It was this thinking that made me want to meet Annie. In this day and age it is a tough road being in the military and being a military family. Awareness of their needs and help in any way is a Godsend. Thanks to Annie and the American Soldier Network they are here to help.
One way the American Soldier Network is helping is through their “Show Your Soul: Donate Your SOLES" campaign. Meet the one and only Rusty Coones and his wife K.O. You may have heard of a show called Sons of Anarchy. Rusty's character on the show is Rane Quinn. You may have also heard of an awesome bike shop in the OC called Illusion Cycle. If you are into hard Rock music you may also know Rusty's band Attika 7. If you are familiar with any of Rusty's work then you have seen Rusty Coones. So how did Rusty and his wife KO meet up with Annie? “I met Rusty and his lovely wife K.O at another veteran benefit and we found common ground in our hearts for our heroes and when they found out our organization is run solely by volunteers, that we have 0 paid staff, they wanted to build an event where they could truly make a difference and this global outreach effort became their baby. K.O. LOVES shoes and they both LOVE our troops so it was a match made in ROCKER, BIKER, and Philanthropy Heaven.” Rusty uses his star power as a voice, a way to make people aware of issues. He supports many charities and that is how he became part of working with The American Soldier Network. “My top priority charities are those that help the soldiers anytime we can.” That is what Rusty said at an event benefitting The American Soldier Network.
If you would like to be part of this event there are a few ways to help. First collect shoes of any size, style, color, or condition. Once you have done that take them to a drop off spot. “ We have people collecting shoes all over southern California, NYC, Tampa Florida, all over Texas, and Chicago so the best way is to go to our Facebook page www.facebook.com/AmericanSoldierNetwork and message us as to a drop off near you. We will be posting a list of all the drop off locations on our web site by the 10th of October as well as www.AmericanSoldierNetwork.org or email us at info@americansoldiernetwork.org.”
To watch a video re-capping last years shoe drive, click the following youtube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=757DZJ4LBNQ&sns=em
Written by: Melissa Anderson