“The most worthwhile charity I’ve ever been involved in.” That’s what Paul Galanti called Families of the Wounded Fund Inc.

A Mechanicsville man, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Brian Pearce, benefited from the program.

The Families of the Wounded Fund directs 100 percent of donations and net proceeds from its events to help families come to the Richmond area to be near their loved ones while they are healing.

Pearce suffered a traumatic brain injury when his Humvee hit an IED (improvised explosive device) in Iraq.

The fund was able to help Pearce’s wife bring their family from Alaska to Richmond, and to assist them in relocating to Mechanicsville.

The fund was started six years ago. It has no connection with other organizations, such as Wounded Warriors, said the fund’s treasurer Deborah Golding, assistant vice president at Village Bank.

Galanti recently talked about the Families of the Wounded Fund during an address to the Goochland Rotary Club. A retired naval officer, Vietnam prisoner of war and Virginia Commissioner of Veterans Services, he serves as a director of the fund.

“The worst of the wounded come to McGuire Hospital,” Galanti said.

He talked about a wounded soldier who suffered head injuries in a helicopter crash he had visited with at McGuire Medical Center. Once unresponsive, the Army aviator told Galanti in a follow-up call that he was getting married.

Rotary member Tom Winfree, president and CEO of Village Bank in Midlothian, which administers the fund, said that McGuire Medical Center is one of only a few veterans’ hospitals in the nation equipped to deal with traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries.

“The Department of Defense contracts with them for treatment,” said.

What does Families of the Wounded Fund do? It makes it possible for members of the wounded service members’ families to stay by their side during what can be an extended rehabilitation period.

“The support of a loved one is vital,” Winfree added. “We help the soldier by helping the families.”

“We give each family a grant of $6,000,” Golding said. “It gives them the opportunity to be at the bedside of their loved ones. One mother broke down in tears when we gave her the check.” He said she had been praying that something would happen that would let her stay with her son a little bit longer.

No administrative expenses are paid out of the donated funds. All banking and accounting services are provided to FOTWF at no charge by board members.

To find out more about the organization, or to make a contribution, go to www.fotwf.org. The mailing address is: Families of the Wounded Fund Inc., c/o Village Bank, P.O. Box 330, Midlothian, VA 23113

Ken Odor is editor of the Goochland Gazette.

Ken Odor/Media General News Service
Tom Winfree, below, is president and CEO of Village Bank, which administers the fund.