 Meet the Founder and Board President of Everyone for Veterans, Dr. Theresa Cheng.
What’s the best advice you were ever given? My mother always pointed out the importance of being happy no matter how difficult things are. What’s your favorite movie or show and why? I like a lot of movies and shows, but Forrest Gump is a very memorable one. The character, Lieutenant Dan introduced me to the realistic aspect of veteran life that is all around us. What’s your favorite meal? My favorite meal is a hawker noodle dish from Malaysia. What’s your favorite vacation destination and why? There are so many great vacation destinations, however, one of my favorites is in Gandoca, Costa Rica, a beach in a low income area. We get to work with preserving turtle eggs by patrolling the beaches at night and moving the eggs laid to safe areas. It was hard work but fantastic to learn about and contribute to how the community turned the economy of consuming turtle eggs to preserving them.
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 What do you do at E4V?
I am the Dental Program Manager. So I assist in connecting dentists to veterans and their spouses. What about E4V interests you? My dad retired as a SMSgt in the Air Force so I feel at home being able to assist those who were in the service. What activities do you do for fun? I play chess with my son and when I have free time, love to sketch and do various crafts. What's one of your favorite memories from last year? Despite the craziness of Covid-19, we welcomed a healthy baby girl and love watching our 15 year old son with her. What's your favorite food? My mother is Thai so naturally, Thai food.  Our team is decked out in purple as a tribute to military kids on Purple Up! Day.
Jen, our Program Manager pictured bottom right, shares her experience growing up as a military kid: "A military brat is often what we kids who have parents that are in the military are called. In retrospect, I understand why civilians called us that. In their eyes, we got to travel and move to countries all around the world that most people only dream of one day visiting and all we kids did was complain about it (as well as get into a little bit of trouble). For me, it was tough moving around every few years. I was painfully shy and having to make friends only to leave them and make new ones caused a lot of anxiety. There was a constant need for a place to belong. In the end and as an adult, I appreciate the opportunities we had being thrown into so many different cultures, food, people, languages, etc. You learn a kind of open-mindedness that can’t BE without having some kind of nomadic lifestyle. Purple Up! Day is a wonderful day to recognize those new kids who put military duty before family. If you know of one, go out of your way to make them feel welcome in your town and introduce them to your friends! Help them to belong! Thank you!!!"  What do you do at E4V?
I support the direction and operational leadership of the organization, and work closely with our Board of Directors to build community relationships and partnerships. What about E4V interests you? I was born on an Army base and raised by a Navy veteran. The unique challenges that our veterans face is something that is deeply personal to me and close to my heart. What activities do you do for fun? Our family loves all things Disney and our favorite place on earth is Main Street, U.S.A. Disneyland churros are a food group for me. I also enjoy cooperative board games, like Mansions of Madness, and escape rooms. If you could choose a superpower, what would it be and why? I would go with teleportation. This choice is a little food motivated too; my favorite restaurant is over 7 hours away on the Oregon coast. Are you into sports? What team do you root for? I absolutely love college football. I also follow the IFOCE and Major League Eating events around the globe. I’ve been able to attend a handful of sanctioned professional eating competitions and they are absolutely electric!  We are very excited to share the news that E4V has been awarded Guidestar's Platinum Seal of Transparency, the highest-level of recognition for nonprofits reporting metrics.
Offering full visibility and accountability as to how we operate is not only a necessary step for us, but also the cornerstone to maintaining the trust of our supporters, partners, donors, volunteers, and communities. We are so proud and honored to be able to give back to combat veterans and earning this recognition shows us we're making a positive impact. Thank you to everyone who believes in us and our mission, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do without your support! Check out our profile: https://www.guidestar.org/profile/81-4462476 Dr. Moona Khan of South Sound Dental Care in Tacoma, Washington provided Navy veteran Nick and his wife Shannah free dental care.
Nick was deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq and worked in Logistics, which meant he was part of a team that assessed whether bases needed to be shut down. Re-integrating back to society has been challenging but is getting better with treatment at the VA and Shannah’s support. Nick graduated from the University of Maryland and is working now. Exercise is what he enjoys and he and Shannah have 4 children! We wish them the best! Sign up to provide dental care: https://www.everyoneforveterans.org/dentists.html We are thankful to Wingman volunteer Megan for assisting Noemi, an army veteran who served in Iraq as a combat medic. Noemi needed a new mattress because hers was damaged. Instead of buying Noemi a new mattress, Megan looked into other options and counseled Noemi on how to contact the store and ask for a replacement mattress. After calling the store, Noemi received a free replacement mattress!!
Sometimes all it takes to assist a veteran is an outside perspective to provide opinions and advice to solve the problem. Sign up to be a Wingman: https://www.everyoneforveterans.org/be-a-wingman.html  Thank you Valerie for bringing together your friends and church community to provide Deanna’s children with back-to-school clothes.
Deanna served in the army in Afghanistan and loves fishing and camping with her kids. The Wingman Program connects veterans to people in the community to support their needs. You can make a positive change in the community and give back to our combat veterans by becoming a Wingman volunteer. Sign up to be a Wingman: https://www.everyoneforveterans.org/be-a-wingman.html  Thank you University of Iowa College of Dentistry for providing Raymond, a 92-year-old combat veteran, with free dental care. Raymond was an Infantryman deployed to the frontlines of Korea.
After not having a dental cleaning for 20 years, Raymond was able to get partial upper and lower dentures. He can now eat whatever he wants and smiles confidently! Thank you Sue, Eriana, and friends for reaching out and offering to make masks for our veterans! Over 200 masks have been delivered to veterans around the nation.
"It was a very rewarding project. Thank you for helping us make this happen!" -Sue This is a great example of how E4V connects the community with our veterans to support them when in need, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
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