Fayetteville is home to Fort Liberty and with that comes not only a bustling population of Active Duty personnel but also a very active population of veterans. While some veterans can adapt to civilian life with ease, some need a little extra helping hand.
There are several organizations in Fayetteville and Cumberland County to assist veterans with needs from housing, food, to transportation. If there is a need, there is an organization to help. The Women’s Veteran Interactive Foundation is no different. This year they are hosting a High Noon Tea Party on June 22 at New Life Family Life Center, located at 1420 Hoke Loop Rd, Fayetteville, from noon to 3 p.m. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased by contacting Mary Jordan at 910-286-9774. Donations can be made on CashApp to $give2wvifay2.
Attendees should put on their “High Noon Tea” best dress, gloves, and hats. This is the event to show off and show out for a cause. Mary Jordan, retired army Veteran and WVIF fundraiser is excited to bring a classy, fun event to the city in support of people just like her.
“The highlight of the tea is coming out, enjoying some savory food, and various teas and we are going to be honored by [North Carolina] Supreme Court Associate Justice Anita Earls. We have entertainment with Leigh Montague and the Radioboxx (band) and we also have Nigel Graham on the saxophone. It is going to be a beautiful event, where women can get up and wear their fascinators (small British hat) or hats… they will have their gloves, their beautiful floral dresses and we have so many various teas for them to sample and this is all $50, a donation to female veterans,” Jordan said.
North Carolina is home to over 700,000 veterans, with nearly 86,000 of them being women, according to va.gov. Women’s Veteran Interactive Foundation was started by a Navy veteran named Ginger Miller. The foundation was started on the understanding that women veterans’ needs after the military were far different from those of their male counterparts. WVIF, a nonprofit has currently helped over 8,000 women veterans, started 6 distinct programs, and has awarded over $40,000 in scholarships according to their website, https://womenveteransinteractive.org/ WVIF’s outreach is far beyond providing resources but they also supply women veterans with safe spaces to connect and network with other women in the Women Veterans Transition Space. This space provides the women with resources to obtain employment, and to get the maximum use out of VA benefits. They also have a program called Operation Safety Net, to combat homelessness and Beyond the Transition. This program ensures women veterans have connections to the community far beyond the first year of retiring.
The Fayetteville chapter is only one of four chapters in the country.
“This chapter here in Fayetteville, it’s a National organization, but the chapter here in Fayetteville, we strictly focus on women veterans in their moment of need, which could be housing, gas, utilities, various items that they need. We actually raise funds to provide those items in support of those females,” Jordan said of the work her chapter is doing.
As the All America City it’s important that care is taken for veterans.