Operation Purple Healing Adventures are family retreats designed specifically to help families dealing with injuries, including PTSD or TBI. Healing Adventures offer a place to rediscover family-fun and togetherness, specifically for those families trying to adjust to a "new normal." "It pulled us closer together and at the same time took me out of my comfort zone. Never made to feel like our sickness and challenges are handicaps." -Service Member dad
Half of today's military is married - with more than one million children. As difficult as the absence of a service member may be, rejoining their families - particularly for wounded warriors -- may be equally or more challenging. After repeated separations, many service members struggle to readjust smoothly at home and reestablish a parenting role with children and spouses who worked hard to successfully adapt to life without them.
Operation Purple is a program specially designed to address the unique challenges of children and families of deployed, returning service members and wounded, ill and injured. It is designed to help them rebuild family bonds, establish new roles and responsibilities depending on the service members' injuries, and explore new activities to enjoy together moving forward. It's a place to rediscover family-fun and togetherness, specifically for families trying to adjust to a "new normal."
Each Retreat also includes structured activities that have been carefully designed to support resiliency-building, communication, and parenting skills. These activities are all aimed at helping families learn to cope with challenges that are hindering their family connectedness. This year, we were able to serve more than 700 military family members - but we would love to be able to do more. We are helping these families heal by strengthening their bonds as a family.
