WNY Heroes News & Announcements

Are you place of business? Please consider displaying our decals in your window or front door. Help us spread the word and show your support for Veterans and those who need service dogs and that they ARE welcomed in your establishment.

We cannot say thank you enough to the Vietnam Veteran who called and donated this awesome scooter. The next day WNY Heroes received a call from VVA Chapter 77. A Vietnam Vet reached out in need of a scooter. WNY Heroes picked the chair up in Hamburg, NY. Now this Marine Sgt. is “wheels up” and moving!

Listen to Program Director, Lynn Magistrale’s invitation to all Veterans to join Operation BOOTS today!

Kyle Alejandro and his service dog Sully are a part of both our Pawsitive for Heroes program and our Peer to Peer support program. Kyle and Sully set on their very first adventure together to drive across the country. Kyle would have NEVER thought about doing this before receiving Sully. As you see, Kyle also wears the men’s group belt till our next dinner. His duties is to wear that belt everywhere he goes and explain the purpose behind the belt and it’s meaning. Sully has really made a huge difference for Kyle and for that, we say thank you to our sponsors for believing in us and helping us change another Veterans life.

Food distribution will be changed to Sundays starting May 9th and we hope to keep everything running smoothly! Thank you all for your service and working with us to make this program so successful!

Thank you Delta Sonic Lancaster and all of our sponsors for your support keeping our van on the road! Because of you, we can continue meeting the needs of our local Heroes.

While the food distribution was taking place at WNYHeroes home front we had some troops on a ruck march for hunger. Thanks goes out to Amvets post 72 and all the amazing volunteers who came out to ruck for hunger! We can’t thank you enough! A HUGE HUGE Shoutout to Scott Mack for putting this all together and making this happen! THANK YOU!

Ralph Gard Ralph Gardner aka PADRE 💜 is in need of some prayer. For the sake of his privacy and his families privacy we just wanted to share that he’s been having medical issues (non covid) and could use our love and support. Padre is always at our office with a smile (behind that mask) and offering love and friendship to us all during our food distributions and was always the first to volunteer for any of our events before covid. Hurry up and heal Padre. We miss you already.

Thanks to the Easter Bunny for a special appearance along with our fury friends from Spirit Wind Farm (417-6277). Our amazing volunteers take time out of their Saturdays to pass out food to anyone with proof of service. We can never thank them enough. “I volunteer because it’s fun. They make you want to keep coming back. They take care of their volunteers and make sure you know you’re appreciated”. -Volunteer

What an awesome night with our Operation BOOTS Peer-to-Peer support dinner. This month the belt goes to Veteran Kyle Alejandro. Congratulations Kyle and thank you for your service. It was great to see everyone again, listen to the laughs, meet many new Veterans for the first time and more. Watching everyone share stories and chat with new individuals. We had giveaways for those who’s first time attending. We also had the exchanging of the belt. The belt was held by Veteran John Beyer. Thank you Big Ditch Brewing Company for having us in again.

Veteran Service Rep (and Navy Veteran) Rob Stutz is now back in our office 5 days a week effective immediately. You still will have to call for an appointment. Unfortunately, we cannot accept walk-ins. Rob has submitted over 753 Claims/Supporting Evidence to the VA, of which 401 were new claims since last March. Thank you Rob for your commitment to Veterans in WNY.

Dan Dunleavy of the Buffalo Sabres broadcast team, stopped by our offices recently and donated some great suits. Dan wanted to pay it forward, mentioning his admiration for Veterans like his own father-in-law who served in the Navy. The suites will go to Vets in need of some pre-loved formal wear.

Our Veterans came together once again. Employees at the Original Pancake House were so happy to see us all back again. Seeing everyone come together, laugh and be happy felt so good. “I have a wonderful [service] dog who provides me the grounding I need to survive.” -Vet in Pawsitive For Heroes program

Blessed to take this photo with David Bellavia Medal of Honor recipient. Bellavia was awarded the Medal of Honor for actions while serving as a squad leader with the 1st Infantry Division in support of Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah, Iraq, when a squad from his platoon became trapped by intense enemy fire. Thank you brother for your service!

Justice Racing Raffle, tickets now available for a $5 donation. Winners will be announced Sunday April 11, 2021 at approximately 12:45 You DO NOT need to be present. Thank you Justice Racing for your support!