- February 8, 2025
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For the second year in a row, the Port Orange Veterans of Foreign Wars, post 3282, will partner with non-profit Ormond Strong for a Family Day event.
Officially dubbed the J.J. Martin Military Veteran, Service Member, First Responder Family Appreciation Day, the event is a way for the community to support individuals who have or currently do serve.
The event, held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 12 at the Volusia Mall, was named after J.J. Martin, the president of the Vietnam Veterans Daytona Beach Chapter 1048, who died last year.
This is the second year the event had been held and will include a presentation where leadership awards will be given out in remembrance of Martin. The awards will be presented to individuals who define what leadership is and encourage leadership not only among veterans and first responders but in the general community, according to Debbie Kruck-Forrester, commander and founder of Ormond Strong.
“It’s just a way to have a good time with the community and the veterans,” she said. “The community gets to see, the kids especially, the traditions that the veterans and first responders hold so dear and they get to see them in a different light.”
Kruck-Forrester started the group when her husband and 200 other local soldiers were deployed to Afghanistan in 2015. Since then, the group has gone on to host multiple events each week to support service members and their families.
Jose "Joe" Rosa, VFW commander for post 3282, said the Port Orange group is participating again because they want to let residents know they are there to help local veterans.
“We want to be more visible,” Rosa said. “We are the group here in Port Orange that takes care of our veterans. A lot of veterans get assistance from us if they're in trouble, if they need a ride, if they’re getting evicted, we help all of them.”
Rosa said this year the organization will be handing out poppies, a tradition that is part of the national VFW Buddy Poppy program, which uses donations received from the hand-made flowers to help veterans in need.
Rosa said last year they spoke with several veterans who were having financial trouble and were evicted from their homes or were dealing with problems such as their water being turned off.
Rosa said he hopes they can help veterans in similar situations.
It’s this kind of support that Kruck-Forrester said is important when partnering with the VFW and other similar organizations. She noted the local groups were a support system when her husband and others were deployed, which resulted in a close bond they still share today.
“They were there for us,” Kruck-Forrester said. “They’re like my family.”
For more information visit ormondstrong.com.
