Valerie Halaby is President and Founder of SOS Support Our Soldiers, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit Veterans’ support organization. Her passion for helping U.S. Military Soldiers and their families was born of gratitude she felt for their devoted service after our nation’s most terrible tragedy on September 11th, 2001. It was a special invitation by good friend Elaine Rogers, President of the USO Metro, to visit Washington D.C. for a V.I.P. tour of our nation’s Pentagon immediately following the attack. Valerie had the privilege of sharing a private visit with then Army Chief of Staff, General Keane (Ret.); descended 20 stories to the War Room; attended the Laying of the Wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery; visited with patients at Walter Reed Medical Center, and made many subsequent visits to participate with the USO in the years to follow.
After visiting wounded troops at Walter Reed Medical Center and hearing the deeply moving stories of the proud men and women who sacrificed their lives for our country, she became astonished to learn of the many unfulfilled needs and gaps in services that existed, despite the government programs that are in place – things like soldiers having their hospital meals deducted from their military paychecks was something impossible for her to believe. It was with this new understanding of the difficult challenges our young men and women were facing, that she realized a greater calling and purpose had blessed her life.
Valerie’s life path was put into motion many years before her realization to get involved with helping Military Veterans, as there’s no coincidence that she majored in Professional Aeronautics and Aviation Business Administration at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and was selected to participate in a UTC training program at Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company’s government engine business facility in West Palm Beach, Florida, working her way up to Sr. CAD Designer in the Engineering department before leaving after her 6th year anniversary. Valerie received a Special Recognition for Excellence Award as a member of the core engineering team who’s responsibility was to prepare the service repair work on the PW F14 fighter jet engines that led the sortie mission on Libya in March of 1986.
After electing to receive a volunteer severance package from Pratt & Whitney in 1992 as a result of defense budget cutbacks, Valerie went on to become self-employed in the Real Estate industry and gained a vast array of experience from sales to construction to mortgage origination & securitization, and eventually opened A.B. Merrill, Inc. in July 1998, a mortgage investment and trading company.
Valerie also serves on the Board of Directors for the West Palm Beach Friends of Fisher House nonprofit organization located on the VA Medical Center grounds, The Palm Beach County Veterans Committee, Stand Down House/Love, Hope, Faith, Charity, Inc. and continues to maintain her strong ties to the USO, Washington, D.C.
Frank Hogan is CEO of Overseas Service Corporation, a worldwide sales and logistics company specializing in the Federal Government market. A veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Frank is a graduate of Boston University and Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. Frank has been a pioneer in sales to the U.S. military Commissaries, Exchanges and other government entities; is current Chairman of the Armed Forces Marketing Council; past Vice Chairman of the American Logistics Association, which bestowed upon him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1994. He is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Trainor Endowment, which funds an annual award and lecture series recognizing excellence in the conduct of diplomacy; serves on the Board of Georgetown’s Institute for the Study of Diplomacy. Frank is also a member of the Board of Fisher House at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center, a “home away from home” for families of patients receiving medical care. Frank is married to the former Joanna Russell Robinson, niece of the late Senator Richard Russell of Georgia. They have seven children (one deceased) and ten grandchildren (one deceased) between them, and reside in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
As a Principal and Financial Advisor with Bernstein Global Wealth Management, Mr. Barber’s practice is focused on providing investment planning for high net worth individuals, families, foundations and endowments, and business investment portfolios.
Jerold A. “Jerry” Klein serves as National Chair of the Veterans Benefits Committee for Vietnam Veterans of America.
Tom Corey currently serves as President of the Vietnam Veterans Peace Initiative.
Ms. Mulcahy was born and raised in a Naval Air Station town in Massachusetts. Her Dad along with 4 uncles and 1 aunt all served in World War II, one Uncle was Career Navy from WWII, Korea and Vietnam. She grew up an environment that respected our Military and love for our country. She graduated from Lesley University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Management. She has been in the investment industry for over 25 years in Boston, New York and now in Palm Beach. She attended a Fisher House fundraiser in Boston in 2009 and knew she found an organization that was truly making a difference in aiding our veterans.
Commander Michelle R. Watson assumed duties as Commanding Officer, Port Security Unit (PSU) 305, Fort Eustis, Virginia in October 2013. She is responsible for leading a 172 member expeditionary unit supporting national security, defense, and disaster relief operations for the Coast Guard and Naval Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) during OCONUS missions and forward deployments.
A combat veteran of Vietnam, Mr. Phipps discovered the need for accommodations for a veteran’s family after he was transported back to the Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, military hospital after being hospitalized in Southeast Asia for several months. His family drove to see him and take him home for a ten day leave but, there were no facilities nearby for families of wounded soldiers who had to remain in the area until their loved one could be released.