Valley Electric Association presented a $2,000 check to the Nevada Chapter of the Outdoor Adventure Foundation.
Retired Marine Gen. Emil R. “Buck” Bedard, who also serves as the chairman of the board of the Nevada Outdoor Adventure Foundation, stopped at the VEA headquarters in Pahrump last week to pick up a check.
The foundation provides outdoor adventure opportunities for wounded warriors.
The $2,000 donation will support the Wounded Warrior Project. The project serves veterans and service members with physical or mental injuries and illnesses, related to their military service on or after September 11, 2001 and their families, according to its website.
“I wanted to come here and say thank you, on behalf of the foundation,” Bedard said.
The Wounded Warrior Project is one of the largest, most statistically relevant annual samples of veterans and service members injured post-9/11, according to its website.
Bedard spent 38 years as a Marine and retired as a lieutenant general. He has been in 60 countries and participated in Operation Desert Storm, and in the Vietnam and Somalia wars. Bedard is a Minnesota native but has lived in Las Vegas for 12 years.
“I’m proud to have served and continue to serve through this foundation,” he said.
Cassandra Selbach, chief evangelist at Valley Electric, said that in its continued effort to give back to the communities it serves, the cooperative donated nearly $35,000 last year to local organizations and their causes.
“We support countless organizations throughout the year, in a variety of different ways. So, this particular donation was for a wounded vet program,” she said.
The story of the Wounded Warrior Project stood out, Selbach said.
“As a member-owned cooperative, we are always looking for opportunities to serve and support the efforts of local organizations, nonprofits, groups that are doing positive things for the community, making a difference,” she said.
Valley Electric currently provides energy to approximately 45,000 consumers along the Nevada-California line. Among the areas that it serves are Sandy Valley, Pahrump, Beatty, Amargosa Valley and Fish Lake Valley.
Contact reporter Daria Sokolova at dsokolova@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @dariasokolova77