The VetsConnection Podcast
Join host Scott McLean, a veteran and also a passionate advocate for veterans' well-being. Each week Scott will bring you an episode that will feature insightful conversations with representatives from non-profit organizations dedicated to supporting veterans, as well as experts discussing programs within the Veterans Affairs (V.A.) aimed at assisting veterans with their needs. From discussing innovative therapies to highlighting community resources, this podcast sheds light on the myriad of ways veterans can find support and healing thru nonprofit organizations and also to connect nonprofits with each other in hopes of creating a network that will be beneficial to all.
The VetsConnection Podcast
Ep. 64 - Interview With Nick Cannon from the Wounded Veterans Relief Fund. Talking About Smiles, Dignity, And Urgent Help For Veterans
We look at how WVRF delivers urgent financial aid and critical dental care across Florida, why 85% of veterans cannot access VA dental, and how focused partnerships turn donations into fast, visible impact. Stories like 101-year-old WWII veteran Richard Rossi’s full-mouth restoration show what dignity restored looks like.
• teaching veterans storytelling and podcasting through One Man One Mic Foundation
• WVRF mission focus on urgent financial aid and critical dental care
• why veterans lack access to dental care and why it matters
• Richard Rossi’s journey from decade-long denial to a new smile
• word-of-mouth referrals via VA social workers and county VSOs
• fundraising wins including Devil Dog 5K and corporate support
• building a 300+ dental partner network statewide
• scale of impact, waitlists, and responsible triage
• collaborating nonprofits to bridge gaps the VA cannot fill alone
• urging veterans to file benefits claims early and persist
If you like what the Wounded Veterans Relief Fund is doing, give them your money. If you know a veteran that needs their assistance, get in touch with them and see what they can do for you
Like, Subscribe and Share. If you have comments or suggestions email us at: vetsconnectionpodcast@gmail.com. You can also find the video of this podcast on our YouTube Channel - Vetsconnection Podcast
Welcome to the podcast. I'm Scott McLean. My guest today is Nick Cannon. Nick is with the Wounded Veteran Relief Fund in Palm Beach County, Florida. And well, let's uh I would usually tell you what Nick does, and but I'm not gonna screw that up. No. So what's up, my friend? Let's hand it right over to you, buddy. It's too easy, man. I'm pumped, I'm pumped, I'm pumped.
SPEAKER_01:Right into it. It's uh it's a good day, man. It's always a good day to be able to see you. Fellow, fellow Air Force. That's it. Um, you know, brothers, it's uh we're few and far between in the nonprofit world.
SPEAKER_00:I don't know.
SPEAKER_01:It's too many army and Marines.
SPEAKER_00:Exactly. Except for one Marine. Well, you you you got two going that we'll talk about each one of them. Uh so let's tell it's been a year. Yep. It's been a year. Uh last time I did this with you is at my old studio. Now we're in the one man one mic foundation studio. I love it. It's uh you could live in this place, it's not too bad. Sometimes it's not too bad. I do, I think, sometimes. But uh yeah, so let me get my shameless plug-in. One man one mic foundation. Uh what we do is we teach veterans how to podcast and we teach them the art and science of storytelling because a veteran story is their biggest strength, and podcasting really gives them an outlet to be able to uh talk about whatever they want to talk about. And it could it it's it could be for somebody who is uh in a wheelchair or somebody who's physically able to do whatever they want. You can podcast from anywhere, but it just gives the veteran an outlet because there's a lot of us that have a lot to say, and that's what we want to do at One Man One Mike Foundation, and we want to do it one mic at a time, one veteran at a time. So if you want to find out what we're doing and the work we're doing, and we've reached veterans all across the country, uh you can go to one man one mic foundation.org and sign up for the podcast class. It's free, it's a free podcast class, and you get a free podcast kit when you complete the course, thanks to the Monad Uh Gratitude Foundation. So see, I I have people that donate too, Nick.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, no, no, we have to. It's so important though, because you're 100% right. You do, you know, uh four years in the military, 40 years in the military. Yeah regardless, every veteran has a story, and that story's worth being told. So what you're doing, it's uh proud of you, brother. Thank you. Proud of you.
SPEAKER_00:I appreciate that. So um enough about me. Let's talk about you and the wounded veteran relief fund. Tell the people what wounded veteran relief fund does.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, so uh Nick Cannon, Air Force veteran, uh, six years active duty, uh got out back in uh 2018-2019, got involved in politics, wanted to see the flip of the script uh to see, you know, who's making these decisions. Uh spent a year in uh Tallahassee, uh, and then uh a little bit after that, spent a year in uh Congress uh working for the Fed, you know, seeing what that higher level up is. All right. You know, unfortunately we got a government shutdown and uh all those that are affected, it's a shame. It's a shame. Um and we have to do better, our legislators have to do better, stop making this a political token and realize that these are the lives um, you know, that are keeping us safe, and we have to take care of them. And uh as a director of operations for Windows Veterans Relief Fund, that's what we do, you know, uh providing urgent financial assistance and critical dental care for veterans throughout the entire state of Florida immediately. Um and it takes a team. We have an amazing team, uh, roughly nine people spread out throughout uh the entire state, focusing on those veterans that are in crisis, right? Whether their lights are turned off, uh they got that eviction notice on their door, um, and and even uh an amazing one-of-a-kind, not just within the entire state of Florida, but within the country, focusing on veterans' dental care. Uh so a cavity, a cap, a denture, a root canal, uh immediately solving those veterans' uh dental issues and financial issues 100% for free. That's what we do every single day.
SPEAKER_00:When did uh Wounded Veteran Relief Fund come about? When was it established?
SPEAKER_01:Yep, 2009 is whenever it was created. Uh Wounded Warriors of South Florida, I believe, was the name. Uh, throughout the years, up until about 2016, our executive director, Mike Durkey, took on and completely changed the organization, uh, not just with fundraising, but the mission itself. And that's something I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday about. You have so many uh nonprofits, and a lot of them are scattered, right? What do we want to do? Do we want to do a service talk, or we want to do housing, or maybe we're doing a little bit of everything, provide meals or this or this or this? And it's so important for a nonprofit to figure out who they are, what is their mission? Is it a thousand different things? It could be kind of difficult to track. Um, but who Wounded Veterans Relief Fund is at the core is putting veterans first and ensuring that their urgent financial needs are met and their critical dental is taken care of 100% free. And and that's who we are. The dental program, like I said, one of a kind throughout the entire country. Nobody's doing it. So who is? We are. We are.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you certainly are. And uh it it it came on fast. Once as it does, so there was probably a lot of confusion with the name, the original name, right? Uh, and I'm sure you still get that, you know. Oh, wounded warriors. No, no, because when I first heard about you guys, right? It's these things have to become like in your face, like, oh, oh, oh, there is a difference, right? So I assume changing the name to Wounded Veterans Relief Fund is gave you a whole new Yeah, it worked out.
SPEAKER_01:When you have nonprofits spending hundreds of million dollars on advertising, yeah, um, to throw that name out there to bring hundreds of million dollars back in, you kind of lose sight. Okay, well, where is this, where's this money going to? You know, well, our advertising is through our veterans. Word of mouth, also um, you know, we work with every single VA throughout the entire state, as well as the 67 county VSOs, veteran service officers to ensure when that veteran needs that help, great, you're already connected. Boom, referral sent back to Wounded Veterans Relief Fund. And that at that time we start processing, uh, ensure that you qualify for our veteran programs, and then uh, you know, we go from there.
SPEAKER_00:It's funny, it's funny you use the term word of mouth because it's not just word of mouth, it's seeing the mouth. It's a smile. It's a smile or smile.
SPEAKER_01:Or you go from seeing a veteran that's that's homeless in your car, right? And I'll talk about it a little bit later. Um, but uh Miss Rosa last year through Hurricane Helena Milton on the West Coast, she lost her house, right? Woken up in the middle of the night by her neighbors saying, Hey, get your daughter out. You got flooding in in your house, four foot of water, her and her daughter daughter go out of the um out of her house through the water, get into their car, drive to a safe location, car was completely flooded too. Overnight, you lose everything. That house caught on fire, and uh, you know, within minutes, hours, you go from being stable to nothing. So who do you turn to? What what other agency is gonna be able to immediately, you know, give you something that that's sustainable? Um, and that's just one of the the many stories that we're able to do every single day with an amazing team uh that makes it happen.
SPEAKER_00:Yes. Um, so we talked about the dental aspect of it. That is not cheap. No. I don't know one veteran that says, Oh yeah, I I just you know, well, I I personally don't. I know they exist, but they go to the VA to get dental. You have to reach a specific criteria 100% or VA uh uh service connected disability.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. And that's the only way, which uh in turns uh is 85% of veterans do not qualify for VA dental care, which is again, and we talked about this last time. How as a nation can we fund so many I saw I saw, and again, not to be political about this, but I I saw funding um to to see a uh a diversity um study on owls, right? Why is this owl doing better than this owl? Right. So they pour millions of dollars into these programs, but yet veterans who ensure that we have a country to live in can't get dental care. It doesn't make any sense to me. And and those that are listening, those that are watching, you you think about that cavity in your mouth, right? You you press it on. Life's expensive right now. So you push it, right? It's either I'm putting my daughter in daycare so I can continue going to work, or I go to the uh the dentist and spend$1,000 on a root canal. Well, my daughter's got to go to school. I gotta go to work, so let's push it off. Next thing you know, it turns into an infection. Then what? That thousand dollars turns into$5,000,$10,000. It just goes higher and higher and higher. And then how do you how do you go from there? Now your teeth are falling out. What's what what's what's happening to your confidence? How do you go get that next job? How do you kiss your your husband or your wife or smile with pride and in public? You don't. So then you start talking to you it develops into a mental health problem because your smile's gone. Your smile's gone. Again, you're prideful being in the military, getting out of the military, standing on your two feet, and you don't have any you don't have any teeth in your mouth, and nobody's talking about it. Nobody's talking about it.
SPEAKER_00:The connection between your teeth and your overall health is very underrated. People do not really connect the two. Like you have to stumble into something, like an article or YouTube, you know, video or something to really see how important your teeth, you know, oral hygiene is for your overall health. Because what you just said, your teeth rot it leads to sepsis. Right? You can get sepsis, and then what is that? It's all because of your teeth. And again, understanding that that's it's a it's a it's a lot of money to pay for dental care, to pay for dental insurance, and the fact that 85% of the veterans aren't eligible for dental. It's because it's extremely expensive. It's extremely expensive. Now Wounded Veteran Leave Fund Excuse me. Uh you run you you're part of this operation, you have veterans you know coming to you all the time. There's a waiting list, right?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, uh always a waiting list, but uh again, with funding as it continues to come in, we're able to prioritize those veterans who who who who truly not only qualified but need it the most. Um and for an example, uh World War II veteran, 101-year-old Richard Rossi, an individual fought through Nazi Germany to come home. He spends generations living an amazing life, beautiful children. Um, and for the past 10 years, he wasn't able to get dental care. Barely a tooth in his mouth. Uh, another friend of ours, uh Mike Trim with WPTV, asked us to bring him to a news interview. And Richard Rossi and I both live in Port St. Lucie, so I had the opportunity to live one of my dreams and meet a World War II veteran just to listen to his stories. And as he tells his uh being in the Army, fighting through Europe, I tell him about being in Panama City, in the Air Force. So um, you know, I definitely not equal stories. Uh, but throughout that, I told him what Wounded Veterans Relief Fund does, um, both urgent financial and dental care. And he says, Nick, I've been fighting for 10 years trying to get dental. And I looked him in his eyes. I said, Richard, I promise you I'll fix it. I promise you I'll fix it. And he said, What do you mean? I said, I'll show you what we mean. Uh so I dropped him off at the news interview in West Palm, called Dr. RT's office, USA Dental, called our uh Tammy Marin, director of veterans programs. I said, We have an opportunity. We have an opportunity to do something that as an organization shouldn't have to do, right? We shouldn't have to be providing dental care for our nation's heroes, but we do, because we, again, we have to. Um, and uh I reach back out to Richard and let the team know, let the uh dental office know, and everybody's pumped up about it. Go back to Richard's house uh a few days later, fill out the application online, and then I set up the first appointment. So I drive back to Richard's uh house, I pick them up, throw them in my truck, and I drive them to Dr. RT's office, and that's when his first initial treatment plan uh started. It's been roughly, I'd say maybe two and a half months uh since this whole thing's been going on. Uh again, missing a large amount of teeth. Um, we were able to do his cavities, his caps, and then as of yesterday, we completed pretty much a complete and total mouth resource. Um, and for the overall cost that would have uh been for Richard was$10,000. But because of our dental plan and uh our dental network, our dental partners, that$10,000 got brought down to$3,500 for our fee schedule. And then I make a payment to Dr. RT's office and I pick them up uh, you know, every couple weeks. I take them on. And it's just uh it's surreal. You know, usually we're not the ones that are carrying the veterans over there. But when you have an opportunity, because for Richard, assisted living home, he he didn't have anybody else to do that. Um so what do we do? We step up and we make sure it gets taken. You become his family. So the probably the second or third time I picked up Richard, I had my daughter with me. She's three, Stella, not beautiful. I I love you. Um so I had her in the backseat and she's on a big Moana kick right now. So she's singing the Moana songs. And Richard Rossi, he played saxophone uh all of his life. And uh, even in the army, he was he had an opportunity to work for the Select Services, which he was the a band member that played saxophone. And he often says that the saxophone saved his life in the army because as he was a radio technician for the army, uh that saxophone became a position for him to play. So then he toured around, uh, not necessarily fighting against the Nazis, but now playing for uh dignitaries. So I have my daughter Stelle in the back seat, Richard in the front seat, she's singing away, yapping away, and Richard starts singing with her, you know, just going with the tune. And I'm driving, I had to put my sunglasses, it's like raining outside, put my sunglasses on, bawling my eyes out because what what an opportunity to see a generational difference from a three-year-old beautiful little girl to a 101-year-old World War II hero, and just all of time just stopped. And they're singing along together. I'm crying, trying not to crash. And uh those those are the moments. Those are the moments that make little those little moments like that. You know, uh a a dad, Richard's a girl dad too, to his two daughters, Linda and Joy. Both are nearly 80, you know, so it's a bit of a a time gap, but you know, forever. But they were three ones. But they were three once.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. You know, and uh and that that's what it is. And your daughter really had no idea what was going on. That's the beauty of it. Yeah. Like she had no idea what was going on, like who this guy is. He's just a nice old man.
SPEAKER_01:No idea. And it was funny. We uh so yesterday when I was driving him to his final dental appointment, we FaceTime my daughter um just so they could say hi to each other. Uh whenever I can, I'd like to show, like, drive her her her by Richard so just so they can kind of see each other. Richard loves puzzles, um, you know, keeps his mind occupied. So he's done a bunch of puzzles for my daughter, which are hanging up in her room. Wow. You know, but it's uh I get goosebumps talking about it because again, it's uh it's what we have to do as fellow veterans taking care of our brothers and sisters. Um, this is this is why we're here. And and I uh I give credit to God uh for making that possible.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. So let's talk about money. Nonprofits. I always say this. This is where this is the the engine that runs the machine, right? Uh is is money. So uh what was it uh about a month and a half ago? Yeah the uh the Devil Dog 5K. Yeah, Wade Waddock, shout out to Wade Waddock, that's right. Always a shout out to Wade, great guy. Happy birthday. Yes, be lated. Happy birthday, Wade. Yeah. Um he kind of took the reins of this Devil Dog 5K. Wow, how many years ago? This was the 10th anniversary. 10. Mm-hmm. This was the 10th anniversary. And it's grown literally every year. Every year, it's grown, like it has never gone backwards, which is uh, I mean, that's a tribute to him. It's a tribute to your foundation, the foundation you you work for. Um the fact that it gathers that much steam every year. There's always a pause in some of these, but not with this. So the Devil Dog 5K is a fundraiser that the Wounded Veteran Relief Fund has. And I've been there the last two years with the Hulk. Yeah, with the Hulk, I think it's massive. Yeah, with Halloween, uh, you know, and they would, you know, there's people almost everybody there took their picture with it. It's and I and I enjoyed doing that. But uh last year, last year, uh Wade, we'll just say Wade in the Devil Dog 5K raised how much? 104. 104,000 last year. Unbelievable. Yeah. Unbelievable. Like you hit six figures. You're you're a player.
SPEAKER_01:It's a test it's a testament uh to Wade and who he is as a person. Yeah. He's a Marine. He he wakes up and and to quote him, he pisses excellence every single day. And I uh I think he was on a show maybe this year, maybe last year, where he wakes up and he says three words every single day. Yes, yes, yes. There weren't other options. You have to to execute, and that's what that's who Wade is as a person. Uh Wade was actually the first person that I reached out to when I got of the Air Force back in 2018, 2019. Um, I don't even know how it worked out like that, but it was funny that you know, we started talking on Instagram, and then fast forward, you know, years later, this is who he is. He's a staple of not just the community, but uh in my opinion, the country. And we're just grateful every single day for him.
SPEAKER_00:So last year it was 104, we said. And so we had the Devil Dog 5K last about a month and a half ago. What was the total? 114.
SPEAKER_01:114. Yeah. 114,000. In donations. And and that's because of Wade and his entire team, the Evolution Fitness community, yeah, uh, the the Boca Ratone, Palm Beach County community. And uh, you know, Wade believes in our mission. Yeah. And because he sees the work that we're doing every single day, we don't take this money to put it back into advertising to raise more money to get higher salaries for employees. It's not who we are. We're veterans that believe in our mission every single day. And we understand that the more money we can give out to our veterans, the the bigger impact we can have on those, like Rosa, um, like Martha, like Richard Rossi. The list goes on and on and on.
SPEAKER_00:Someone on my board of directors and uh a friend of mine, and and I think a friend of yours, Johnny Shrey. Mm-hmm. Yeah. That's how he kind of got helped. 100%. Yeah. It's a hundred percent. I didn't know he was kind of that in kind of involved with Wounded Veterans Relief Fund. He's quiet about it. Yeah. You know, he is, but he praises you guys to heaven.
SPEAKER_01:And that's what it is. Like that's our advertising. Yeah. Our advertising is going through the veterans, you know, word of mouth in their stories. Because again, we're stubborn. By the time we have to ask for help too often, it's too late. Too often, or is that eviction note on your house too often are those teeth completely out of your mouth? Um, but for us, it it the past doesn't matter. The past doesn't matter. It's what's the problem today, and let's fix it together immediately. Yeah, let's fix the future. Yeah. Because that's what you're doing. And that is. Yeah. That that that's the truth, truth of it. Um, you know, the veteran suicide count these days, uh, people can debate it, you know, 22 a day, uh, 30 a day, 11 a day, 12 a day. None of it matters because as long as there's one. Exactly. As long as there's one, there's it that that means it's a crisis.
SPEAKER_00:And that means somebody has to step up to do it. We know there's more than one. You know, the uh why people debate the number, I don't I don't know why it's just too many. Ridiculous.
SPEAKER_01:Ridiculous too many. Get me on a VA tangent because I attend all the VA mental health calls for the country. And uh they go back and forth, talk about the good work that they do, the not so good work that they do. But the issue is as far as I'm concerned, just put the number one up there. Because we we all know it's more than one. We all know again, whatever that number is, but the fact that it's more than one, the fact that it's one at all, yeah, is a crisis. And that's why we have to continue funding programs like this when the government isn't being able to do it.
SPEAKER_00:So a little bit about the VA. I I am an advocate for the VA, they help me. This is why I I I I am but they are by no means perfect. Yeah. Nobody is. No, they are by no means perfect, and they are a gigantic ship. Right? And people complain about them. And you have the right to do that, and not you, yeah, per se. Veterans. But imagine if it wasn't there, number one. Imagine if it was not there. Right. So I always say to people, just think about that. You know, we complain about something that's sitting right in front of us, and it's a giant ship, and it has its mistakes, it makes its mistakes. But the fact that there's organizations like Wounded Veteran Relief Fund that offset the VA's maybe downsides. Yeah. There's a nonprofit out there for everything that the VA is trying to fix, there's a nonprofit out there that is doing it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:We say bridge that gap. We bridge that gap for it. And again, you know, the VA is is is under Congress. That's who it is. You you we can be frustrated with the VA and like anything. I I tell this to a lot of people too, because I attended while still working in Congress, um, a VA union meeting, and they were so frustrated with with so many different things payroll, HR, pick and choose. Um, but what I like to say is when you walk the halls of the VA, look at the staff. If the staff isn't happy, how can you how can you think that the the veterans are gonna be happy? They can't, right? So focus from the top. Let's fix the problems at the top, and uh that way it can all stem down and actually start making these VAs work because they all work differently. The ones from Miami to the one from Bay Pines to James Haley to the West Palm Beach now, um, Tom Corey, I believe is the name of it now. You know, they're all ran by different leadership networks. Um, but they have to come together. We all have to come together, figure out ways to to bridge the gaps where uh unfortunately veterans are falling, falling through the gaps, um, and make that difference to make sure these veterans are taken care of.
SPEAKER_00:And you're right, every VA is different. There's little VA clinics to the big VA in West Palm Beach. And so this is what I learned years ago in my sobriety. I'll be 35 years sober in November. Uh, and I was told early uh if you don't like an AA meeting, go to another one. Yeah, 100%. Don't go to a VA like a clinic, and I'm not even gonna mention one because someone will think I'm being disparaging to that clinic. If you don't like what's going on there, you might have to drive another 30 minutes, but you find that one VA where you're like, you know what, I feel comfortable here. And then there they are. Like that, that's your spot. That's your AA meeting, as we would say.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, you have the option, and you have patient advocates throughout the VA too that that'll fight for you. Yeah. Um, you know, and and like any we all have good days, we all have bad days. The people at the VA, they they're trying their best with the options that they have and the resources that they have. Um so I'd echo, you know, what you're saying. There the VA is good. Thank God it is here. Thank God we have veterans benefits um and veterans health care. Thank God we have organizations like yours. Yeah. But it's all a team, it's all one big wheel that's rotating and every organization plays a vital role in that. While we service urgent financial needs and critical dental needs, you're providing an outsource with one one man, one mic to give veterans that voice. Yeah. Right? To give veterans that voice so they can tell their story. And God from God hoping that it inspires that next generation to talk about it. Because if somebody's listening um, you know, to us right now and they say, you know, that that that clicked. That clicked. Now let's try something else. Now let's try. We've all, and I say it all the time, we've all seen the devil, we've all been through hell. Um, maybe one time, maybe two times, maybe three times. Um, hopefully none, right? But uh, but but we've all seen it. And uh, you know, for me and my daughter, she she saved my life. She was the the accountability from going from the military to fixing F-22s to then kind of losing that. Living the life, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, living the life. Yeah, I get you. And then uh kids will do that. Well, you some people know you were fortunate enough to be aware of it.
SPEAKER_01:Mm-hmm. Yeah, and it gives you that that sense of accountability and that sense of purpose. Yeah. So what do you do with it? How do you how do you build this um this legacy for for your daughter or your son um to kind of grow up with? And that's something that's important to me is as as I continue to grow and do all these different things to bring her right there, right along, you know, to show her there are ways to give back. Find what you love, find what your purpose is and go for it and go for it and make the difference for for for those around us. Because look, um, you know, our country likes to help a lot of other countries out, which I support to a degree. Um, but nobody helps us. Nobody helps us. It's up to us to make that difference. And uh we're lucky to have such a beautiful, beautiful community to make it happen every single day.
SPEAKER_00:So that was a rabbit hole. Yeah, shocker. But we do that. It'll happen again. Uh so Wade gets the 114, you guys get that check. It's amazing. Like everybody, I don't know anybody that wasn't like, really? Like, what the fuck? Right? Let's just being blunt, right? That's great. And everybody that there was how many people were there?
SPEAKER_01:Oh my gosh, over a thousand? Yeah. Yeah. Going to um the into the next morning. It was on a Sunday, so that Saturday night it was it was over a thousand. And uh again, a testament of of Wade's courage, his commitment to and and that's something else too, is is Wade finds ways to to make a difference every single day. He does his his savage Saturday workouts, which brings veterans um, you know, wherever they want to come for free to work out at Evolution Fitness over in Boca. And um, but again, he figures out more ways to continue contributing to the mission and he sees the importance of that. So um, you know, Wade, thank you. Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. He is a vital part of our community, our veteran community down here. I I can speak on that. He spoke at my fundraiser, he told a story for my my uh fundraiser every year. Uh, and yeah, and he jumped right in. He didn't really want to do it too much, but he he did it and he did great. Uh so then, so okay, you guys are riding high. Like any foundation that gets a donation, it gets, you know, a big donation like that. But then, like what? Uh about a month later.
SPEAKER_01:So to backtrack, uh, I want to say June, July, um, actually, even a little bit earlier than that, uh, a company, a godson, again, called Philip Morris International, uh, our executive director Mike Durkey and I were invited to an event down in Miami. And he goes, Nick, do you want to go? I go, Miami. I don't know if I want to go to Miami. I know that feeling. And he's like, All right, uh, I got this one. All right, thanks, Mike. Uh, my liege. And uh, so Mike takes his wife, Lauren, and they go to Miami. And uh, it's like a little cocktail mixer and whatnot. And uh Mike ends up meeting a couple people and they say, Hey, let's jump on a phone call. So he comes back, he's like, Nick, let's set up a phone call with Philip Morris International. I go, I don't know who that is. Go online, see what's happening.
SPEAKER_00:The Philip Morris.
SPEAKER_01:The Philip Morris International. And uh so we jump on a Zoom call, we start talking, and um, Mike comes out and he's like, you know, they they're trying to develop uh or they're working on a new nicotine pouch. They have an old uh uh one that's pretty familiar. So we're on the Zoom call, we're doing introductions, we start talking about Wounded Veterans Relief Fund and our priorities, our dental program, urgent financial assistance program. And uh their team jumps on and they say, Yeah, have you guys ever heard of the the nicotine pouch called Zen? My light, my face lights up, and I go, Zen? Like, Zen? I grab it off my desk, I was like, Zen? Show it to the camera. Yep, right here. Yep. Well, boom, there we go. Zen. And they start laughing. I start laughing, I was like, these this is y'all. He said, Yeah. I was like, oh my God, this is the best day of my life. And uh yeah, so we continue going back and forth and uh they talk about uh a monetary donation. Um, so we submitted one for$100,000 and a couple weeks go by and they say, Congratulations, we'd like to provide$100,000 to your critical dental assistance program. Unbelievable, life-changing, and most importantly, life-saving. You know, this funding, as quickly as we're able to bring it back in, it's going right back out. Um for an example, right now for our dental program, we have uh 188 veterans that are currently being seen throughout the entire state. Um, already over 300 veterans that have already been seen for their dental uh uh treatment has been completed. Great job, everybody. Uh, but 188 uh that are currently being seen by dentists throughout the entire state, with over$250,000 outstanding to do uh to make payments for. So this money um that came in roughly in July uh uh completely makes a difference. It's a we're able to take a breath, right? Um people ask how how far can this money go? Well, every person, every person's mouth is different, every treatment plan is different. While Richard Rossi's was$10,000 brought down to$3,500, that can can uh you know be a lot different depending on what's what's going on. Because it's not as if a veteran comes in and they have no teeth and we only do root canal. Sorry, we can't help you. No, not at all. Whatever that dental, that critical dental acute comprehensive need is, we send them to the dentist, treatment plan comes back, we make payment, veteran gets seen. As long as it makes sense for both the veteran, um, you know, and the qualifiers to make sure that we're doing what's right for them. Not what's right for the bank account, but what's right for the veteran. Um, so uh again, that$100,000 for Philip Morris International, it was life saving. Life saving.
SPEAKER_00:I I but I think it you might have got more if you went, Nick. I think you might have got more.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, just rock it rocked it out a little bit. Yeah, maybe.
SPEAKER_00:So next time.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I look we've um and and shout out to Phyllis Morris Morris International, uh PMI US uh for making this happen as well, too. Yeah. Um Eleanor um that's working uh with their PR team has done an amazing job. Lila, Lisa, their entire team uh at PMI, they have stepped up uh in a tremendous way because they don't have to. Like that's the most beautiful thing about this. They don't have to. They want to. They want to support veterans. I believe in 2025, 2026, they have a commitment of three million dollars uh to support nonprofits uh serving veterans. And this is going to be a partnership, God willing, for a long time. Yeah. Because this is a media media. We did a a press release um involving Richard Rossi, World War II veteran, Dr. RT at USA Dental, and um Hernan, who is a uh an executive with PMI, he flew down. We did a big check presentation, and it was great so that he was able to see the immediate impact and to create a story um uh and ultimately save lives.
SPEAKER_00:Uh yeah, a true story. Yeah. Like a life-saving story. Um that's that's amazing. Like that windfall. But now to the listeners,$214,000 donated in a say a month and a half time period. Now to a lot of people out there, they'd be like, oh wow, they're set. But I'm pretty safe in saying that that money goes out as fast as it becomes in. Because now, again, we mentioned earlier in the podcast there's a waiting list. Yeah. So this opens up that waiting list a little more. I know it's and no, and that's also predicated on how many dentists you have available. But um that money is not like sitting in a pot and you know, like just covered saying, look what we're growing interests trying to fund more whatever you want to call it.
SPEAKER_01:No, it a hundred percent not. It gives you a chance to breathe a little bit, yeah, but that's not gonna last long. It's not. You know, our our wait list, we have to shut down our applications the first week of every single month to ensure that we're not digging that hole um even more. It it it's it's difficult, you know. But with an amazing team, we prioritize those veterans that need that funding first, right? So if you're going through an eviction right now instead of an eviction next month, let's focus on the right now and then get to the next month whenever that time comes. Still prioritizing every single veteran, but ensuring that we are responsible, you know, with that money. But like I said, uh over 188 veterans that are currently being treated with two hundred uh over$200,000 in outstanding bills and payments that we have to make to our dental partners. Yeah. You know, so it again, this is uh$100,000 is life saving because these are veterans that that would be unheard, unseen. And um that's that's the relationship and the impact that we're all making together between Wade, PMI, and and all of our donors. You know, it it takes all of us. Last year we serviced 1,324 veterans with one. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. I'm not gonna let that one just breeze right by. Yeah. Say that again. So so last year we're proud to announce that we serviced 1,324 veterans and their family members with$1.78 million in direct financial assistance through both programs. This year, we're already over a thousand veterans and their family members uh with over$1.6 million. And we haven't even hit November yet. We haven't even hit November yet. That is an impact. The growth is there. The growth it but unfortunately the need is is even higher. The need is even higher. But it it it takes a team. It takes a team, and and God willing, we're gonna keep going every single day to ensure that um, you know, we can say yes to more veterans to make sure those lights are on. They're inside their home, their car is fixed up, and and they have teeth in their mouth. That way they can enjoy that steak, you know, or that whatever it may be. And they don't have to constantly fear that their livelihood is going to be destroyed or ruined. Um, and we can step in, you know, together. We can step in and make it f make it make a hole, make a hole for them. Because that's what they deserve dignity, respect, uh, purpose, and honor.
SPEAKER_00:And and I know we're talking a lot about the dental, but you touched on it. So this money isn't just for dental. This money goes to financial assistance or whatever else the veterans need in those first come, first serve bases, maybe, or whether it's a you know, they get bumped to the front because that's kind of like the the importance of it. But I just think that uh, you know, there's a lot of money that goes into that also. Right? Yeah, 100%. Yeah, and and so if you're a listener out there, this is multifaceted uh different uh tiers of of a foundation. Like you cover a lot of bases. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:You go where the need is. In 2021, we realized that dental wasn't happening. I'm I believe we touched on it in the last episode we did, um, where a veteran came in, didn't have any dental care. We didn't know that dental care was such a need throughout the, you know, the community, the veteran community. So we said, okay, let's see if we can start with one dental office, one veteran. Uh, and then we realized that since nobody else is doing it, let's grow with this. Other organizations provide urgent financial assistance. That's just the reality of it. Thankfully that they do, right? But nobody's doing dental. So let's see if we can grow this program and turn it into something um, you know, that saves lives, ultimately saves lives. So from 2021 with one dental office to today, we have over 300 dental partners throughout the entire state of Florida. Those dental partners sign onto a fee schedule, roughly 40 to 60 percent off their normal rates. How do you get them? Let me ask you that. How do how do you how do you grow shout out to the dental team from one to 300?
SPEAKER_00:Like how what's that process? Like seek and destroy? It's uh a lot of a lot of coal calling.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, but and and I want to give you know praise again to our executive director, Mike Durkey and Jade Sembrek. Jade and Mike were able to take this program um, you know, battle uphill, battle uphill. And then Tammy Martin, director of veterans programs, comes on. And she came from the dental field already. And her relationships, her passion most importantly, and her her love for what she does. She grows um again from roughly 20, 30, 40 dental partners, and again, cold calling, cold calling. Hey, do you want to help veterans? Yes, no? Okay, great. Sign on to a fee schedule and we can uh start sending veterans your way. To then just completely taking everything over, taking it by storm to where now um even the state of Florida recognizes our dental program and uh we're able to expand additional services uh due to the Florida Veterans Foundation as well as uh the legislator and Governor Ron DeSantis. But again, it it goes back to passion and love and what Tammy Martin's been able to do with the dental program, the dental team. It's been unbelievable. To now we are at over 300 uh growing every single day to where it's not so much of cold calling, but managing the dental partners, managing the relationships with the dental partners and even uh, you know, um incoming dental requests from partners saying, hey, we see what you guys are doing. We saw a news article, we saw you at the dental convention, we want to help. So many people want to help and um, but maybe not have time in their normal lives, right? These dentists that are out there, they want to help. They love veterans, they love our country. But how do they do it? Well, here's an opportunity for them to do it. You know, we plug and play the veteran, we send them over to your office, you do a treatment plan, we make payment directly to you. There is no wait time, there is no red tape, there is no bureaucracy. It's just easy to a degree, right? To a degree to it, it's it's simplified execution. Um, but again, it it takes it takes the team, it takes all of our partners, and and a love for our veterans to make sure we can continue doing it every single day. What's the reach as far as Florida goes?
SPEAKER_00:From the tip of the panhandle to Key West? All of Florida.
SPEAKER_01:Wow. All of Florida. And uh it's a beautiful thing. But again, back to what we were talking about with the VA and the veteran service officers. It's a it's a trusted relationship because when that veteran raises their hand and they say, Hey, I need help, great. You have a social worker at the VA that can connect you directly with Wounded Veterans Relief Fund or the Veteran Service officers. And we rely on those relationships um because it also gives that veteran a point of contact for other services. Heaven forbid we can't assist them. Maybe they need a service dog, maybe they are interested in equine therapy with Heard Foundation. Um, maybe they they're looking for one man with one mic. But that connection at the VA is like that um that resource center for the veteran. Um, that way, well, you know, once we're good with them, we send it back to the VA social worker and they can assist them with other needs that they may be uh maybe going on with.
SPEAKER_00:That's key. And and they do, and that's what I said what we we talked about earlier, is that you you have to have a relationship with the VA. Like I truly believe that. And this is just my opinion. But if you are a nonprofit or you're an organization uh that's working with veterans, some call it a necessary evil, some say it's a blessing, some say they're a huge help to their foundation, some say they're no help, right? But I personally believe you should have a connection to the VA because that's where the veterans are. 100%. That's where they go. That's where they're gonna get referred to. That's how I got referred to Heard Foundation is through the VA. Yeah. It works.
SPEAKER_01:It's something for those that are listening that maybe haven't wanted to touch that, right? Yeah. Um, whether it's veteran benefits or veterans' healthcare, right? Veterans benefit is huge. So while still working um in Congress, time after time after time, we would have veterans that would come asking for assistance. You know, I I never reached out to the VA, I never did my VA disability claim. Well, why? Right. And I'm not here to judge you, I'm just curious to know why. Well, I had bad opinions, this didn't happen, my paperwork got lost, whatever it may be. I challenge the listeners, one, to keep trying, right? To to go through it because there's going to be, heaven forbid, there, there's a point in your life where you need the your disability compensation or you need the help of the VA. When you're talking about the federal government, it takes time. So while I'm sitting in my office working in Congress, I had a uh a woman come in. She was the spouse of a veteran. Both of them were uh living in the condemned house. Uh the entire place was uh filled with with filth, uh, completely uh what do you call it? Hoarding. Yeah, hoarding to the point. So they were pushed out of their house and living on their deck, right, in Florida. This was in like August, you know, a few years ago. So the husband veteran passed away. The uh the the spouse, the widowed spouse comes to uh my office trying to get uh veterans benefits. And we start going through the process, the paperwork. I find out that he passed away and he never got enrolled in VA healthcare and he never did the veterans uh disability claim. At that point, it was borderline impossible because all of his healthcare records, one, weren't there, already enrolled at the VA. Um, the ability to then now process him as a disabled veteran, you couldn't because he already passed away. Right. So now this woman, I had to connect her with the um uh elderly age of aging, another organization outside of the VA, because then she didn't qualify. All right. I I wish we were able to make it happen, but unfortunately, due to these decisions, um, right or wrong, um, it it made it impossible for something like survivors benefits, who she would qualify for. She didn't because that veteran didn't take the necessary steps to do it. And I say this is that there's organizations out there, whether it's the VA, um Florida Department of Veterans Affairs who have um uh case managers to process your uh your disability claim, as well as all of the uh Florida Veteran County Service officers, they can process the disability claims too. Start the process now, because all too often you're gonna get to a point in your life where it's going to be too late and you're not gonna be able to make it because how long it takes for the process to happen. You're lucky if it if it takes six months. Too too often is it over a year? If they get your disability claim right the first time, amazing. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes they don't, and it takes even uh appeal processes. Even my grandpa uh he passed away from cancer. He was uh denied, denied, denied. But every single time he would do it, he would kind of also just give up on the process. Um, so those that are listening, please, God, please keep trying. If you need help, reach out. I don't know. I I can't tell you how many side side project veterans that I'm I'm going through the process with right now. It's just understanding it, understanding the um, you know, the barriers that are unfortunately there for veterans, um, but then how to get through those barriers and uh God bless uh we'll figure out a way for you.
SPEAKER_00:A couple of episodes ago, I interviewed my friend Bob, he's an 80-year-old Vietnam veteran in a wheelchair, had some strokes. Story is amazing story. From not to get into all that, but from 17 years old, dropping out of high school, ended up in Vietnam, he signed up on his own to getting, you know, some terrible stuff happened over there for a young kid. He ends up living on the streets for 18 years in New York. You know, he did some time, there's a lot going on there. Um his is a story of redemption. He didn't apply for any of that stuff until he broke out of that in his fifties. Like he broke and he said, It's time for a change. And the VA started taking care of him. And he all of a sudden becomes like you, like myself, you know, we're probably following in his shoes. He becomes a big advocate for veterans to get their get their their benefits. He would go out into the streets and find like that was kind of his thing, because he was in that world. He would find veterans like homeless and get them benefits. He would lead them along and bring them along step by step. He goes to prisons and talks to veterans in prison. You know. But the point here is you're absolutely right. He didn't do anything, but it's never too late. Never too late. It's never too late to go. I I I as the story goes, you've heard it. I floated out in that ether for 20 years. You know, in what in two uh 1999, I get a big packet of paperwork from the VA clinic down in Hollywood. Fill it out and bring it back. It's intimidating. That ain't happening. It's intimidating. Right in the trash, you know. And I went back and they helped me, and that's, you know, but along the way, that's how I found these nonprofits. You know, that's how I realized that these things exist, and each one of them serves a great purpose. And that's how I ended up, you know, through Jonathan Oakley. I meet Mike Durkey and I interviewed him. He was one of my first interviews in this podcast. That's when I was doing it in the kitchen studio. Yeah, that was actually a nice studio. I wish I had a video camera for that. We could wine and dine everywhere. It was a beautiful setup right in my kitchen. Um and that's how I learned about Wounded Veterans. Really fun. And then I, of course, like all of us, we stopped talking about it. Oh, Nick, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know Nick. Yeah, or whatever you need. Like, we need to help each other.
SPEAKER_01:You have to. It's so important. We have to take care of each other. And something that we always uh, you know, for the things that we can't do as an organization, another organization can. You know, we're we are not here to sit here and try to collect donations just for Wounded Veterans Relief Fund and it's just us against everybody. No, it's not. It's all of us. It's all of us. The the more you succeed, the more we succeed. And we can do it together. The nonprofit, I think there's over 8,000 nonprofits just in Palm Beach County alone. How does everybody fight for that dollar? One, be different, right? Not here to change your mission, but I'm just saying try to try to be different than others. That way you can service more people and support other organizations. We're not fighting against each other. We're fighting for each other. And that's the mentality that has to continue going on. And I wish that would echo all the way up to uh the tippity top. But uh, you know, until it does, that's why we're here. That's why we're gonna continue waking up every single day and to quote Wade and say yes, yes, yes, and fight for each other as we have to, as we have to.
SPEAKER_00:Even on our bad days, we gotta be good. Every day we wake up, it's a good day. Every day, that's right. How the rest of the day goes, well, that depends, right? But today was a good day, my friend. It is, it is all right. So if um people want to, and I say this every episode, um, and the people that listen to this podcast, now the people that watch know what I'm about to say. If you like what the Wounded Veterans Relief Fund is doing, give them your money. Give them your money. If you got extra money, give them your money. Because what they're doing is amazing work. And I interviewed this is like my 64th interview, right? So if you take away the doubles, I probably get about 57, right? And I say that about all of them because every one of these nonprofits connects with somebody that's listening. Yeah. You know, it might not be this one, but it's the next one. If you can help a nonprofit that's working with veterans, God bless you. We all need the help. No matter if you get a giant, you know, windfall in a short period of time or you get a little bit.
SPEAKER_01:And that's something that we're working on right now is our recurring donors. Ten dollars a month, if you can swing it to five dollars to a dollar, you know, w vrf.org and uh donate right on the page, whether you can be a monthly donation donor or a one-time donor. The reoccurring donors are are the lifeline to our organization because you know the big checks come and go. That's just the reality of it. But our our monthly recurring donors, you see this impact every single day. And we're proud to be able to do it because it takes all of us. Um, so again, w vrf.org, click the donate page, um, PayPal, Venmo, um, Apple Pay, all of the above, super easy. Uh, and check out our Google reviews too, and hear it from the veterans first, right? Check us out on YouTube, Google Reviews, um, our Facebook, social media, Instagram, uh, LinkedIn as well. Uh this is what we do every single day as we save lives. Uh, but it takes all of us, and damn, we'll be sure to keep doing it.
SPEAKER_00:And it takes people that have, you know, the the ability to donate. Yeah. I mean, that's that is what again keeps us running. And when you go to wrf.org, um see what they do. Just look at everything they do. Now, I always say that everybody's website is glamorous and glorious. That's how it's supposed to be designed to get the viewer and the in the clicks and all that. But there's some that stand out over others, and there's some that really show exactly what you do. And there's no fluff. This is all truth on that website. That's all truth about what the Wounded Veteran Relief Fund does. Uh I I don't want to sound disparaging to other nonprofits because they're all great websites. Don't you know what I'm saying. But I'm gonna get canceled. I'll get canceled in the veteran world. Oh man. Um, but everything on that website is truth and it and it's real.
SPEAKER_01:100%. We're proud that at over 80% of every single dollar goes directly back to our veterans. That okay. That that that's what we do. That's key. 100%. 100%. And we and we have to. Uh, because again, while we don't spend money on advertising and marketing, we do all of it in-house. Um, those are more veterans who are going to be housed. Those are more teeth that's gonna be placed in veterans' mouth, those are more lights that are gonna be turned on. Um, that's the impact. You know, uh our Google reviews, I I check it out, I get tears in my eyes every single time because it's it's raw, raw testimonials, right? Nobody's forcing these people to do it. It's just the reality of it. And uh, and we're proud to do it. And again, Philip Morris International. Um for y'all to step up while so many um while so many can't, um, it's it's a testament of who you guys are as an organization. It's a testament of who you value, the veterans in the United States. And uh, we are proud, we are honored, and most important, we're we're thankful for you um and your entire organization. And uh, and God bless, I I do love my sins. So shout out to y'all.
SPEAKER_00:There you go. There you go. And I think we had that uh that funny conversation where it was like, hey, did uh did so-and-so from uh Philip Morris reach out? Oh yeah, yeah, like it was really yeah, like you're like, really? I'm hey, I'm somebody, okay, Nick Cannon. I don't know the name of a famous star. Well, you're but you're a better man than him, I think.
SPEAKER_01:It's a good campaign name. It's a good campaign name. It's a good campaign name. We'll get there.
SPEAKER_00:I was thinking you get it all the time. I know this. I know this. And I was thinking at the beginning when I said my guest today is Nick Cannon. Not that Nick Cannon.
SPEAKER_01:Father's Day is pretty rough.
SPEAKER_00:This is the veteran Nick Cannon. Yeah. But uh, Nick, as usual, it's always great to see you. Uh always great talking to you. Um, we gotta meet up more, we gotta meet for lunch again. Yeah, um when you're not so busy. And I'm not so busy. I got things. I gotta let the audience know this. Prioritize, implement, and execute. Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. And again, thanks for coming on. Uh, I always appreciate your time. I appreciate what you guys do. I appreciate you altering your schedule to do this. Always, by the way. And uh with that, I'll do my outro and then we'll uh we'll talk afterwards. Appreciate you, brother. I love you. You too, buddy. You too. Um well thanks for watching, thanks for listening. If you like this, share it. Uh if you don't like it, well, thanks for watching and listening for 51 minutes and 37 seconds. I appreciate that. If you like what the Wounded Veterans Relief Fund is doing, go to the website WVRF.org, give them your money. Or if you know a veteran that needs their assistance, just as important, uh get in touch with them and see what what they can do for you. There's a great chance that they'll be able to help you. Uh they're doing great work and from one tip of Florida to the other. So wherever you're listening to this in Florida, don't be uh don't hesitate to reach out to them. And well, as I always say now, uh we built another bridge today, and it's uh this is the second bridge with Wounded Veteran Relief Fund. And I always appreciate them coming on. And uh well, I will see you, and you will see me and hear me next week.
