Next week, the Orlando VA will host an enrollment and health fair for Orlando veterans at Disney’s Wide World of Sports.
The quote from the news story reads…
“Disney has graciously offered the venue, parking attendants, security and audio-visual equipment in order for us to be able to host this event. This is a major new partnership for VA and we are ecstatic to be able to provide this opportunity to Veterans,”
While help for veterans should never discouraged,(especially in Orlando, where veterans have so many problems), Disney’s contributions feel like nothing more than a public relations initiative.
Florida remains among the leader in veterans suicide. We can’t afford the rent in Orlando. And Disney sits on the sideline while millions in tourism development tax funds bypass our brothers and sisters and goes right back into the tourism funnel.
If we’re being honest, the Orlando VA is doing Disney a favor here.
Wide World of Sports is such an impractical location for struggling veterans too. Why are we making our veterans travel so far for help?
What would really help veterans would be for Disney to set up some affordable housing for us. No one else in Orlando is working on that.
They could sponsor a veterans shuttle that could help our elder service members bypass a shoddy LYNX bus system and get us to Lake Nona and Baldwin Park.
They could partner with local dentists in the area to end the pain many of us are living with every day.
Instead, our homeless brethren will try to wade their way to Wide World of Sports for a photo opp, a place they’d never be able to visit if they weren’t being forced to go there for help.
Disney already has everything. They don’t need me to wish them luck. I just wish they could do something that would actually make a difference.
There are still going to be resources there if you need help. You can get the details HERE.
Many of the veterans in the communities I write about don’t have a voice. I look to highlight their struggles, many which overlap my own. If you’d like to help the blog, you can below.