Southern Illinois Veterans Foundation

10/07/2026

🧡 We’re so excited to share our story and the mission of Oarsome Odyssey with GiveSI and all of Southern Illinois!

Through Southern Illinois Veterans Foundation, we’re preparing to row the 6,000-mile Great Loop, bringing veterans aboard to build friendships, rediscover purpose, and know they don’t have to face their struggles alone.

This mission helped me find hope when I needed it most. Now, I want to help other veterans find that same reason to keep going. Every veteran deserves to feel supported, valued, and excited about tomorrow.

During GiveSI, we’re taking on a 30-hour rowathon at Rend Lake, October 8–9, to support our Great Loop mission while raising funds for This Able Veteran and Roll2Heal.

Southern Illinois, you can be part of this! Watch our video, share our story, and pledge toward every mile we row. 🚣

🎥 https://youtu.be/KYfBTWTXpp4

Rowing so veterans don’t fight alone.

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

10/06/2026

🥤🚣‍♂️ We’re at Parker Plaza today with Emma and Aiden’s Dirty Soda!

A big THANK YOU to Pork-N-Gene's for inviting us to set up and sell dirty sodas alongside them today! ❤️

Come grab some delicious food, pick up a dirty soda from Aiden, and check out Emma—our Oarsome Odyssey rowing boat! We’d love to share how we’re working to support veterans and help prevent veteran su***de. 🇺🇸

Bring a friend, come hungry, and stop by to say hello! Please share to help spread the word! 🙌

10/06/2026

Join our Upcoming Rowathon! 30 hours of rowing. One mission: help end veteran su***de.

Starting Thursday, October 8 at 5 p.m., the Oarsome Odyssey crew will row on Rend Lake through Friday, October 9 at 11 p.m., raising funds to support Southern Illinois veterans through connection, adventure, and peer support.

You can be part of the mission:
• Pledge per mile, with a maximum gift you choose.
• Put your business behind the crew with a sponsorship.
• Make a donation through GiveSI during the event.

Follow along on Facebook Live, cheer on the crew, and share this post to help spread the word. Every mile is a chance to remind a veteran that they don’t have to face life’s challenges alone.

Learn more and pledge 👉 https://oarsomeodyssey.org/rowathon

10/01/2026

A huge THANK YOU to Walmart Marion - Outer Road Drive for its generous $1,000 donation to the Southern Illinois Veterans Foundation!

This support will help us continue connecting local veterans through community, adventure, peer support, and su***de-prevention efforts. When local businesses invest in our veterans, they send a powerful message: You are valued, you are supported, and you never have to fight alone.

Please join us in thanking the entire Marion Walmart team for supporting our mission and the veterans of Southern Illinois!

09/26/2026

We are incredibly grateful to Walmart Harrisburg - S Commercial St for its outstanding $2,000 donation to the Southern Illinois Veterans Foundation!

This generous gift will help us build connection, community, and purpose for veterans throughout Southern Illinois. Every program, adventure, and opportunity to bring veterans together moves us closer to our ultimate goal—ending veteran su***de and ensuring no veteran fights alone.

Thank you to the leadership and associates at Harrisburg Walmart for standing with our veterans and investing in this mission!

07/20/2026

A huge thank you to Lawn Enforcement of Southern Illinois for sponsoring $500 toward our American Great Loop row!

Their support helps move Oarsome Odyssey one step closer to bringing veterans onto the water, rebuilding connection, restoring purpose, and reminding veterans that they are never alone.

We are incredibly grateful to have local businesses like Lawn Enforcement standing behind our mission to build connections and save lives.

If you need lawn care, make sure you support this awesome veteran-owned company. They support our community, our veterans, and our mission, so let’s return that support!

Thank you, Lawn Enforcement of Southern Illinois , for helping us row for those still fighting! 🇺🇸🚣‍♂️

07/09/2026

We’ve created a Walmart registry for the social media equipment we’ll need to help document and share the Oarsome Odyssey journey.

If you’d like to help contribute to the mission, every bit of support makes a difference. This equipment will help us capture the journey, share veterans’ stories, and bring more awareness to our mission of ending veteran su***de.

If you already have any of this equipment and would like to donate it, we are always grateful and willing to accept any and all help.

And hey… if GoPro wants to sponsor the journey, we definitely won’t turn that down either. 😂

Registry link:
https://www.walmart.com/registry/RR/b5bb934e-bfc4-47ab-b3cb-1525c011ce06

Thank you all for continuing to support this epic journey. Together, we can make an impact.

07/09/2026

07/07/2026

Today is a reminder that when a community comes together with a shared purpose, incredible things can happen. Thank you to everyone who has supported our mission, believed in our vision, and helped make this journey possible.

Every milestone brings us one step closer to making a lasting difference. Here's to the memories we've made today and the hope we're building for tomorrow.