Community Contributor: Team RWB
June 29, 2017
By : Inspired Woman Magazine
Contact Inspired Woman

first-old-glory-run-walk-ride

You’ve heard of veterans groups like the VFW and the Amvets, but have you heard of Team Red, White, and Blue? It’s a fairly new national organization and has been in North Dakota for about four years, thanks to Theresia (Hersch) Fode and her husband, Bob. Theresia shares more about Team RWB.

Give us a little history of your organization.
Team Red, White, and Blue (Team RWB) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tampa, Florida. Mike Erwin founded the organization in 2010 while he was a Captain in the Army. The mission of Team RWB is “to enrich the lives of America’s veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity.”

In 2013, my husband Bob and I organized Team RWB in North Dakota. We had both been deployed twice with the North Dakota National Guard and were looking for something that could connect and help deployed service members back to their community or service family.  We were seeing our battle buddies and others struggling with depression, suicide, and lack of purpose.  In Bismarck this really didn’t just fit the mold for service members but it also affected their families and the communities that they lived in. We discovered Team RWB after a visit from one of Bob’s battle buddies from Texas. We did research, had two meetings, and the regional director finally told us to just do it. By December of 2014 we had over 400 members just in the Bismarck area.

How are you different from other organizations like yours?
Team RWB finds an opportunity to reconnect through social and physical activity.  We have free workout classes, group run/walks, Tea with the Team, we do community service, and we also connect with our fellow Veterans from other campaigns. One of our biggest community events is a social in December at the Lights on Chestnut and our biggest physical event is our Old Glory Run/Walk/Ride/Stroll from Pioneer Park to the Global War on Terrorism Memorial at Fraine Barracks for the Remembrance Service on September 11th. We currently have chapters in Bismarck, Minot, Grand Forks, and Fargo. A chapter is coming soon in Dickinson.  

How can people contact you if they want to be involved or learn more?
Email is the best way to contact our team.

How can people donate or get involved?
There is no membership fee to join Team RWB. We encourage family and the community to join. They will receive a monthly newsletter via email with all events taking place. All events are free unless specified. Click here for more information. You can donate on our website as well, just select the “donate” tab for more information.

What are your needs right now if someone would like to help?
We are looking for community and veteran projects. Contact us if you have any suggestions!   

 

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