Memorial Day and the Naval Special Warfare Foundation

Teammates, with Memorial Day weekend coming up, I thought it would be a good time to introduce you to one of the more important links on the CHARLIE MIKE blog: www.nswfoundation.org.

Naval Special Warfare – NSW – is Navy speak for Navy SEALs and all those that support the SEAL teams and boat units. The NSW Foundation is the non-profit that supports the SEAL families in time of need…and lately, the SEAL families have unfortunately needed a lot.

I was first introduced to the foundation when a friend, SEAL classmate and teammate, Mark Frietag, was involved in a training accident. While he and his teammates were practicing Close Quarter Combat in a “kill house” (a structure designed with bullet proof walls so SEALs can practice live fire drills in confined areas to simulate hostage rescue or bad-guy hunting), Mark was struck by a bullet that somehow weaved its way through the bulletproof wall, Mark’s body armor, and his rib cage. The bullet came to rest in Mark’s spinal column and left him paralyzed from the waist down. Though there’s some financial assistance the military offers its vets, it’s not nearly enough to cover all the expenses of this kind of challenge (note, I don’t call it a disability – knowing Mark’s can-do attitude from training, he doesn’t think of it as a disability – it’s a challenge which can be overcome!). Enter NSW Foundation: they helped Mark and his family outfit his house with wheelchair access, get the best equipment for his challenge and assist with a transition to the civilian sector.

This example is the just the tip of the iceberg on what the NSW Foundation has done and does for its family of NSW teammates that it serves. Lately, NSW Foundation has been busier than ever helping the NSW family cope with life altering injuries and loss. Most folks don’t know what SEALs do when on a mission – and that’s the way it should be - but everyone should know what the NSW Foundation does to help those after the mission. The Perfect Pushup team feels so strongly about the importance of the NSW Foundation that we donate a portion of the sale of each of our products to the NSW Foundation.

So this Memorial Day, as you take a moment to thank our troops for all they have done and are doing, don’t forget about thanking the organizations like the NSW Foundation whose mission is helping those after their mission is over.

CHARLIE MIKE - ALDEN