It doesn’t get much better than a day at the park, fishing for blue gill and barbecue grilling with friends.
Just ask veteran Thomas Stubler, a resident in the VA Pittsburgh Community Living Center.
He is among the 100 or so hospitalized veterans who are treated every year to an outing at O’Hara Community Park hosted by the Morningside Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3945.
“It’s a great place us to go relieve our tension,” Stubler said. “It’s so wonderful that other veterans like myself are sponsoring this for us.”
The post’s commander, John Santoriello, who served as a minesweeper during the Vietnam War, said he hears regularly from health care staff that participants “tell them about the wonderful day and how they can’t wait to get back out there.”
The VFW post has been hosting the festivities for 14 years. It has grown from a few dozen participants to more than 100.
Sunshine and camaraderie are on the menu. But the sole mission is to “give these guys a better day than the one they had before,” said Santoriello of O’Hara.
The event will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 8 and is open to all veterans. Those who are in hospitals and nursing homes will be provided transportation to the park along Fox Chapel Road.
Anglers will be assisted at the lake — which will be stocked by the VFW — with fishing rods and bait. After some leisurely catch and release, they will be treated to barbecue, an ice cream truck and free haircuts.
Prizes will be awarded for the biggest catch.
A DJ will spin music, and there will be goodie bags for everyone to take home filled with socks and toiletries. Attendees also will get coupons to use at the stores inside the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System and other long-term care facilities.
“A lot of them are just excited to get out and get some fresh air,” Santoriello said. “These are American heroes. They deserve our recognition.”
Tawnya Panizzi is a TribLive reporter. She joined the Trib in 1997. She can be reached at tpanizzi@triblive.com.