Tag Archives: MOWW

The 67th Annual Massing of the Colors and Service of Remembrance

The 67th Annual Massing of the Colors and Service of Remembrance
Saturday, October 14, 2023
10:30 – 11:30 AM

FREE PUBLIC OUTDOOR PATRIOTIC CELEBRATION

EVERYONE IS INVITED!

Spreckels Organ Pavilion Balboa Park
2125 Pan American E Rd, San Diego, CA 92101
(Free Parking in Lots within the Park)

Keynote speaker: Lieutenant Colonel Alec Lange, U.S. Army Reserve (Retired) – Representative for the 50th Vietnam War Commission.

This traditional ceremony honors the flag of the United States of America and those living and deceased who have gallantly struggled to preserve it and our freedoms.  The ceremony is also designed to instill and foster patriotism and love-of-county. Please come out and join the celebration with members of our armed forces, veteran organizations, law enforcement agencies, and civic and youth groups.

Scouts and Scouters in uniform can receive a special large Massing of the Colors patch for attending.

2023 SAN DIEGO MASSING OF COLORS ENTRY FORM FOR COLOR GUARDS OF UNITS, SCHOOLS, ORGANIZATIONS, & COMMUNITY GROUPS Press SUBMIT Button When Completed.  Thank you!

Color guard units will report at 9:00 AM.  Don’t forget your US Flag and unit flag.

Honor Flight San Diego

By Holly Shaffner

Coming this spring – Honor Flight San Diego for WWII/Korea/Vietnam War Veterans and terminally ill Veterans from any era. The organization will fly 85 senior veterans on a three-day trip to Washington, D.C. to visit the memorials built for their service and to truly honor them for their service. The trip is planned for April 28-30, 2023, and a second trip is planned for Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2023.

The Veterans will visit the WWII, Lincoln, Korea, Vietnam Memorials, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Memorials, and Changing of the Guard Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, and women Veterans will visit the Military Women’s Memorial.

The trip is at no cost to the Veteran due to generous community supporters. Every Veteran is paired with a guardian/battle buddy who pays $900 to help offset the per person cost of the trip.

How can you help?

  • If you know a Veteran from WWII/Korea/Vietnam Wars, or a terminally ill veteran, please help them apply at: www.HonorFlightSanDiego.org. They can also call (800) 655-6997 to have a hard copy application sent to them.
  • Save the Date for Sunday, April 30 and Sunday, Oct. 1 to welcome them home at San Diego International Airport. There will be 800-1,000 people there to give our heroes the homecoming they deserve!
  • Share information about Mail Call to your community groups. The organization is collecting letters, cards, and notes for the Veterans going on the flight. Letters can be sent directly to: Donna Hester, 645 Front Street, Unit 614, San Diego, CA 92101. You can also contact Donna with questions or to request a letter pick up by emailing her: donna@thehesters.com or calling her cell: (619) 985-9729. Deadline to receive mail call for the spring flight is April 22nd.

Thank you for your support to get our SoCal Veterans on a “Trip of a Lifetime!”

MOWW November Meeting

From Top Secret to Topspins

Navy Intelligence Officer, Captain Steve Kappes, USN, Ret.

San Diego’s MOWW is honored to welcome Capt. Kappes as our keynote speaker in November.

Steve spent decades using intelligence to improve our national security.  Now, he uses tennis to improve the lives of wounded, ill, and injured service members, veterans and their families. He will discuss his career and how it led him to serve others through the sport he loves.

Steve is the co-founder and Director of the San Diego Wounded Warrior Tennis Program, and he has been a very active member of our local veteran community for 14 years.  Prior to that, he served 24 years as a Surface Warfare qualified Intelligence Officer in assignments around the world.

MOWW November Meeting

Wednesday, Nov. 16
Meet & Greet: 11:00 a.m. |  Program: 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
San Diego Unified School District
Revere Center
6735 Gifford Way, Room 2
San Diego, CA 992111
Open to the Public
Cost is $12 Per Person (Lunch Included)
*RSVP Required*
Email Craig Noble at craignoble@cox.net

We are grateful to the San Diego Unified School District for hosting this month’s meeting.

BACKGROUND: Captain Steve Kappes served 24 years in the Navy as a Surface Warfare qualified Intelligence Officer. He served ashore in the U.S. and overseas, and at sea with deployments to the Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and combat zones in the Middle East. He led teams of hundreds of intelligence analysts who provided tactical level intelligence used in combat and peacekeeping operations, and provided intelligence support to fleet and multi-service intelligence centers and national intelligence agencies that influenced military operations worldwide.   He also served as the Principal Intelligence Advisor to senior Navy leaders in the Pentagon working on long-range strategic plans.

Following his Navy career, Steve continued to support deployed naval forces through his work as a Program Manager and Director at KAB Laboratories and Epsilon Systems Solutions, San Diego-based defense contractors that provide software, systems engineering, and training products and services to the Navy and other government clients.

As a volunteer, Steve co-founded and directs the San Diego Wounded Warrior Tennis Program which uses tennis a means of physical and emotional rehabilitation and community reintegration for wounded, ill, and injured service members and veterans from across the country. Over 1,000 disabled service members and veterans have benefitted from this program since its inception in 2009.

Steve also serves on the Board of Directors for three community tennis organizations and for Zero8Hundred, a nonprofit veteran service organization that helps military members, veterans, and their families transition from active duty to civilian life. He is currently earning a master’s degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from the University of San Diego in preparation for a career in the social impact sector.