In Your Community - “Catch a Vet” Charity Fishing Tournament: Supporting Gold Star Kids

When the AT&T Veterans Employee Resource Group National Board asked local chapter presidents for nominations for our 2015 nationally supported organization, I thought of no foundation beyond Gold Star College for Kids. After meeting the foundation’s chairman nearly 2 years ago, I knew I had to be part of this movement to support the children of our heroes lost in combat operations, “Gold Star Kids”. Now, as a proud Gold Star board member, I have been humbled to learn about how the children and families of fallen service members are impacted by the loss of a parent. They need help on so many fronts and I think Gold Star does more for these families than can be put into words.

Headquartered in St. Charles, MO, Gold Star College for Kids provides educational funds, mentors, mental health, and family support for Gold Star Kids. The foundation’s mission is to alleviate the fears a surviving parent may have about providing a college education for their children. Gold Star’s founder Harold Hogarth is a Vietnam veteran who wanted to give children and their parents a chance to receive a college education that wasn’t offered to military veterans of his era.

“I wondered, ‘what if Dad didn’t come home?’” said Hogarth. “What is the future for the kids, and does it involve education? I felt something had to be done.”

Supporting Gold Star is a natural fit for the AT&T Veterans ERG. As president of the St. Louis Metro/East Chapter, I am excited to team up with the Missouri West Chapter to host the first ever “Catch A Vet” charity fishing tournament benefiting Gold Star on May 16th at Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri.

AT&T is a proud supporter and employer of veterans and their families and the AT&T Veterans ERG is proud to extend that support to Gold Star Kids and their families.

You can learn more about the “Catch a Vet” tournament and register here.