The Van of Valor program is the brainchild of Kevin and Lauren Wallace. Their mission is to travel to all of the lower 48 states and record the stories of at least 100 Purple Heart recipients or Gold Star families.
Kevin had served in the Air Force for seven years when the opportunity came up to become a Combat Photographer. On April 3, 2011 Kevin was attached to a team of 12 cavalry scouts tasked with establishing an observation post in a set of ruins in Northwest Afghanistan. Kevin sensed that something was amiss when their meeting with the village elders was less than cordial. They began taking fire while exiting the village but were able to make it back to the ruins.
Kevin and his 11 comrades were engaged on three sides by more than 100 Taliban fighters, some of whom were using women and children as shields. During the attack, an RPG came so close to Kevin that it singed his beard. It exploded behind him, peppering Kevin, four of the scouts and their working dog with shrapnel. He would be awarded the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star w/ Valor for that battle.
The couple had discussed traveling the lower states and bought a used Fed-X van with 300,000 miles, converting it to a travel van. Lauren says she was inspired start the Van of Valor project after personally witnessing the impact that shared trauma has among Purple Heart recipients and Gold Star families.
If anyone knows of a Purple Heart story that needs to be told, please check the Van of Valor website to see if your community is along their planned route. You can also track their progress at the website. Kevin and Laura are accepting donations to offset the costs of the journey.
TAKEAWAY: “We are asking people to dig up a lot from their past and make people uncomfortable so that the grander public can understand the sacrifice that Gold Star families and those who see combat suffer from.”
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