TAPS (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors) Founder Bonnie Carrol learned, in the most unfortunate manner possible, how deeply inadequate it is to have solely government support services available for the surviving family members of military personnel who lost their life in service. Bonnie had been working on Capitol Hill when she decided to join the Air National Guard. She met her husband, Army officer Tom Carroll in the West Wing of the White House, introduced to each other by the President.
On November 12,1992, she lost her husband in an Army plane crash. In the years that followed, she began looking into “What was there for families like mine? Where was the community where we could come together and find a way forward to support each other. To go beyond what the casualty officer could provide?”
Identifying gaps in the support provided to grieving families, she founded TAPS in 1994. She says the moment and manner of death does not define the years of life in service. T.A.P.S serves all families no matter how the service member died. “We honor a life lived in the defense of democracy.”
The non-profit organization is privately funded and is not associated with or endorsed by the Department of War.
Only 3% of the families served lost loved ones to hostile action. Thirty seven percent died from illness and twenty nine percent took their own lives. They are assisting three times more families now than they were during the recent decades of war.
They provide programs dedicated specifically to men, women, and children. They have even worked with children who have lost BOTH parents. Bonnie raves about the children who have been through their programs and come back to mentor other children.
TAPS has expanded their programs worldwide including working in Ukraine. Their support hotline (800) 959-TAPS (8277) is available 24 hours a day. More information about TAPS and their programs may be found here.
Bonnie was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama for her role in establishing and guiding TAPS.