Welcome Home - A Podcast for Veterans, About Veterans, By Veterans

One Check, Many Lives: How MOAA Strengthens Families And Benefits For All Veterans

• Larry Zilliox • Season 3 • Episode 129

Share episode

A podcast guest arrives with a $2,000 check—and a clear mission to help a warrior family heal. We sit down with Dennis Corrigan to unpack how his local MOAA chapter funds a full week at the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run and how the Military Officers Association of America turns membership, mentorship, and policy expertise into real wins for veterans and their families.

Dennis shares the arc of his service—from Navy brat to P-3 Orion pilot, to building flight simulators, to running a veteran-owned small business that protects our grounds from ticks and mosquitoes. Along the way, we discuss what a sustainable transition looks like: leveraging experience, staying relevant, and choosing work that keeps you close to your purpose. Then we zoom out to the larger engine behind MOAA: scholarships for military-connected students, career and resume support for separating service members, and nonpartisan advocacy that ensures COLA adjustments, VA funding, and state-level benefits remain on track. If you’ve ever wondered how Virginia’s property tax relief for 100% disabled veterans happened or how the PACT Act gained momentum, this is the story behind the scenes—coalitions doing steady work.

We also dig into the quiet services families need most. Local MOAA leaders sit with survivors to navigate VA forms, burial honors, and national cemetery eligibility when a loved one passes. That care extends to dignity projects, like securing VA headstones for unmarked veterans, restoring names and service to memory. Whether you’re an officer ready to join, a veteran seeking mentorship, or a supporter wanting to make an impact, there’s a place for you here—chapter events, scholarships, and hands-on help that meets people where they are.

Want to keep this work going? Join or donate at moaa.org, share this episode with a veteran who could use the resources, and leave us a review so more families find their way to support and healing.

Larry Zilliox:

Good morning. I'm your host, Larry Zilliox, Director of Culinary Services, here at the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run. And this week our guest is Dennis Corrigan. He is with a number of organizations that uh I'm personally associated with, and the retreat is associated with as well. Uh Dennis is here. I asked him to join us to talk about MOA, the Military Officers Association of America, and all their services. But we also have our executive director, uh Sarah Ford, with us because Dennis uh brought along a donation for the retreat. And I asked Sarah to join us. And Sarah, thanks for coming. I really appreciate it.

Sarah Ford:

Thank you, Larry. Glad to be here.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah. And Dennis, thanks for joining us. I really appreciate you coming. And very rarely, in fact, this might be the first time that a guest has showed up with money. Oh that's good to hear. Yeah, very good to hear. So tell us a little bit about the donation.

Dennis Corrigan:

So the donation is coming from the people who make up the chapter of MOA that exists here in the local area. We meet at the Heritage Hunt Country Club because that's a central location. We've had our business and our social events that are there. And one of our outreaches is to support those organizations that support our veterans. And that's in a myriad of different ways. Having been supporting this particular uh endeavor here at the William Warrior Retreat Center for almost all 10 years. In fact, the years before it was actually built, uh, we actually held a fundraising at uh the home of one of uh our HOA members, and that's what turned us on to this particular endeavor. And so uh every year we collect money. Um the MOA members tend to be an average age of about 60. And uh so we don't do car washes. So at the beginning of every year, when people are paying their dues, um, they also make donations, and that adds up after a while. And this is going to be our third uh donation uh that when we've been able to make. And we just voted for it this past Tuesday, and so I don't need to have the check in my hands, need to make sure it's in yours. Uh so that's what it's about today.

Larry Zilliox:

And so we're doing an audio podcast. Can you tell our listeners how much the check is for?

Dennis Corrigan:

It's for two thousand dollars. Whoa, okay. Which is almost the cost of a week's stay. Yes. So that that makes it nice and makes it feel good for us as well. Wow.

Sarah Ford:

Yes. Dennis, thank you so much for your support, um, both personally for the Warrior Retreat and also through MOA and the other organizations that you support. Um, as you mentioned, MOA has been a supporter of ours from the beginning before the retreat was even opened. And it it shows the level of commitment that we have in this community and to have this officers organization, you know, gather together and come and say, hey, we want to support those still in the fight. Um means a lot and says a lot about MOA and about your group. And as you mentioned, that uh pretty much covers a warrior family stay here at the retreat. So there's gonna be a warrior family that's gonna be impacted, a warrior family that's gonna be brought closer together and provided healing here at the Warrior Retreat, thanks to your support and the support of your members. So thank you very much.

Larry Zilliox:

Oh, you're welcome, very welcome. Oh and did you have another check? No, no other checks. Okay, all right. Well, we're just checking. Yeah, I just want to make sure in case you had one you forgot about.

Dennis Corrigan:

Yeah, no, this is this is the one that's uh important.

Larry Zilliox:

So all right. Well, we're gonna let Sarah go. Um, because she's busy, she needs to go cash that check. And uh uh Today's Friday.

Dennis Corrigan:

You can do anything on Saturday with it.

Larry Zilliox:

So uh she's gonna get back to work, and then Dennis and I are gonna uh settle down here and talk about MOA. So thank you for joining us, Sarah.

Sarah Ford:

Right, thank you, Larry, and again, thank you, Dennis. We appreciate your support and and look forward to continuing to work with you in the years to come.

Dennis Corrigan:

That's gonna happen.

Sarah Ford:

Wonderful, thank you again.

Dennis Corrigan:

Thanks. The envelope, if you're gonna pull it out from Ether.

Larry Zilliox:

Beautiful. Thank you. Okay, see you later. All right, bye-bye. Okay, we're back. Um Dennis, uh I I do wanna I I do want to talk a little bit about where you and I personally intersect, is uh we're both members of the American Legion Haymarket post-1799.

Dennis Corrigan:

Yes.

Larry Zilliox:

As well as here at the retreat, you are also part of the Knights of Columbus. And the Knights of Columbus um is a huge supporter of ours. They have um for our yearly annual uh car show that we do, you guys are here donating the food and then working the grills and cooking hot dogs and hamburgers for everybody at no cost. Now, most people make a donation, which is very kind, and we really appreciate it. So that function in itself, the cost of the food as well as the donations raised from uh people who are getting hot dogs and hamburgers, um we're we're we're talking thousands and thousands of dollars that you guys have brought in. And um, and it's no small feat. I mean, you g you guys are out there cooking for, I think this last year was one of our highest. We had like 865 people on the property. And um uh a few, more than a few were pretty beefy, and I think they might have gone through that line more than once. I won't tell. So um, you know, uh thank you so much for everything you do. And and also uh look, uh Dennis is uh a franchisee for Mosquito Joe here in the local area, and uh they volunteer and come out and spray the property uh for ticks and mosquitoes, and um that is so valuable to our families that takes a concern away from them. You know, a lot of our families aren't from the country, they're from the city, and one of the things they hear about the country is that ticks will kill you or you'll get sick, or you know, so they're a little bit leery about going out with the kids and everything and running around this huge property. And uh more than once we said, look, we have a company that comes in as raised, you don't have to worry about it. And so that's another way that um folks uh uh really get to experience your generosity, and we can't thank you enough. So if you're in Northern Virginia, and I'm gonna put a link down to Dennis's Mosquito Joe uh uh webpage, because if you need that for your home, your property, you you definitely want to give them a call because we more than anything, we support veteran-owned businesses that support us. Uh and uh we have a lot of tradesmen that come in here and help us and do things like that. So I can't thank you enough for everything you do through the American Legion, through the Knights of Columbus, and Mosquito Joe. Uh you're you're really one of our top uh vendor volunteers, and and we appreciate it so much.

Dennis Corrigan:

Well, thank you very much. Uh that's uh overly generous for you.

Larry Zilliox:

So well, it it it just means it means so much to us. Um so I wanted to start by talking a little bit about your military career. And one of the questions that I always ask our veterans um is as a Navy veteran, why did you join the Navy and not the Air Force?

Dennis Corrigan:

Well, that's a great question because uh I'd have to go back to my years in high school. Um and I was a Navy brat, so my father was stationed at uh Pearl Harbor. Uh and I went to the DODDS supported school in Hawaii, which was Radford University, named after Admiral Radford from World War II.

Larry Zilliox:

Right.

Dennis Corrigan:

Um and I wasn't gonna go to college unless I either got a scholarship or an appointment to one of the academies, and I did in fact get an appointment to the Air Force Academy. And and two days later, I got an appointment to an ROTC, a Navy ROTC scholarship, uh that was going to be at Auburn University in Alabama. Okay. So living in Hawaii, going to uh Alabama, which was an experience. And uh because I had seen the Blue Angels, I knew I wanted to be a pilot. Okay, so things just came together. Yeah, yeah uh got the scholarship, went to Auburn, graduated, was commissioned in Ensign, and went directly to uh flight school.

Sarah Ford:

Okay.

Dennis Corrigan:

Now there is an interesting quick story about that. Uh I worked so hard the last quarter of uh my two time at Auburn to get my degree that uh I forced my eyes to a position where I couldn't pass the eye exam to be a pilot at the physical before I graduated. And so I was given the option to become a naval flight officer, which is the guy who you know sits in the back or sits side by side with the pilot. Um, but I got married uh five days after graduation and uh went to Pensacola. The first thing they do is uh test your eyesight, and I passed with flying colors. And the uh the um optometrist said, you know, you could be a pilot. And I said, I wanted to be a pilot. He said, Let me write this for you. So you just don't do that without doing something special. Uh so they sent me to see the admiral who was there at Pensacola uh when I put in my application to switch from naval flight officer to being a pilot, and he approved that that change. So all of my dreams came true. Married the love of my life, uh, got to be a pilot. Uh, and not that being a naval flight officer and NFO is a bad deal, but that that's how I entered. So it's kind of an answer to your question about the the uh being a Navy pilot or being an Air Force pilot. I think either one would have been great, but I certainly enjoyed my family's commitment to being in the Navy. My grandfather was in the Navy, so it was something that was built into to myself and uh did that for 24 years.

Larry Zilliox:

What did you fly?

Dennis Corrigan:

I flew the P3 Orion, okay, anti-submarine warfare and E-Lint uh uh airplane. I was able to do that for 22 of my 24 years. So I spent a lot of time uh in the air and uh flying over the ocean. Flying over the ocean, yes.

Larry Zilliox:

Uh I was stationed in northern Maine at at Loring Air Force Base, and we used to see P3s come in and do touch and goes because they'd be right off the coast there. Right, right.

Dennis Corrigan:

Yeah, yeah. Well, Brunswick, Maine was where the a major P3 base was located. So in the nice part of Maine. In the nice part of Maine, yes, yes. So it was a it was a great time. Uh I spent uh 23 years in the Navy, 24 years in the Navy, and uh when I finally retired, uh I was at Pax River, uh, Maryland, uh doing the things that provided the uh training for individuals in aviation, whether they were maintenance guys, air crew guys, pilots, NFOs, uh, we bought the supplies, uh, bought the airplane training, etc., that uh they need to to be able to operate efficiently and effectively. So that was great. When I got out of the Navy, uh I decided I didn't want to be a beltway bandit, uh a defense contractor who supported uh all of the regulatory and and money and all that stuff. I wanted to do something that we could build. So I was on my 30-day vacation at the end of um my career, and a company here in the local area called me and asked me if uh I'd come for an interview because they wanted to build simulations, simulators, and that was they needed someone who knew the ins and outs, and that's what I did. Wow. I joined them uh and I had a great time doing exactly what I just described. We had offices all over uh all over the world because training centers are not just in the continental United States. Right. Uh I enjoyed it. Uh I finally retired after 15 years of doing that, and I decided I was gonna play golf. I was going to enjoy life. I was gonna walk the grandkids to school and do that stuff, and I got bored and I found out I couldn't play golf three times a week and feel so I started looking for something to do, and Larry's already said, I uh found something that would be uh fun. It was a seasonal job, mosquitoes hibernate like a lot of mosquito insects. So I uh I we my wife and I both agreed that maybe this was something we could do. And the icing on the cake, the reason why we really did it was because we watched uh my son put uh mosquito repellent directly on my grandchildren's skin rather than putting it on their clothes and that type of stuff. And we said we gotta educate. So we spend more time educating people about insects and how to protect themselves, their their yard, their house, etc. Uh, and that's what makes it fun. We weren't in it for the money, we were in it for the being busy doing something that was worthwhile, right?

Larry Zilliox:

Right. Uh how did you find your transition and separating from, I mean, your whole tribe and that whole life that you built, and all of a sudden, you know, when you close that door, you close that door. That's right. Um, how was that for you?

Dennis Corrigan:

It went pretty smoothly. Um, the Navy at that particular time was making sure that people could uh enjoy the time uh that they were doing the transition. So there were books written like Navy Blue to Civilian uh operations or civilian activities, etc. Uh went through a week-long course on how to write a resume, and and and it was all done by the Navy. And and as a result, I think that we lived through that uh period of time very easily. Uh and then I retired, and then without having a single resume yet written, I got this call from a company that knew who I was, uh, knew where I was, called me, and you know, the rest is history from that standpoint. I I think I was very lucky. Uh everybody doesn't have that experience. Right. Um the the community was a little bit different because during my tour uh with uh the uh Naval Air Systems Command, they moved from being in Crystal City out to Pax River. Right. But my children were uh at that time high school seniors and a high school junior, and I wasn't going to uh move. So I was doing a two-hour commute from um Springfield all the way out to Pax River. But what was nice is there were three other guys in the car. And every week we took turns uh doing it. So the only thing I had to remember is during the week that I was driving, I was not allowed to go to sleep. So it turned out to be a very, very good experience for us. And uh like I said, everything I've talked about from high school all the way through this that particular point in my life, everything came to me. I I don't know if it came without a whole lot of prayer. It probably did. Uh, but you know, it turned out the way I'd hoped it would turn out. So we've been very lucky from that standpoint.

Larry Zilliox:

And when did you find MOA and how did you get hooked up with them?

Dennis Corrigan:

When uh MOA first started, there their name wasn't MOA. It was uh the Reserve Officers Association of America. Okay, and they were um trying to recruit individuals to join them, and I'll talk about why uh in a minute. Um, but they were trying to recruit people, and so I joined TROA initially, and that then morphed into uh we don't just want retired or reserve officers, we want active duty as well. And so now we attract individuals from all phases of uh active duty veterans, people who didn't retire, uh reservists, uh, and the uh two um mostly uh unrecognized organizations, the uh national health uh uh uh group and as well as NOAA, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association. So all seven of those, if you put them together, uh is what we uh started seeing as part of the the group. And so I became a life member of uh that particular organization and transitioned to MOA. Um and I have always looked for outreaches. First, uh when I joined TROA and MOA, it was their offices are in uh the local Northern Virginia DC area. Um and I don't I didn't see any activities, but we were constantly being briefed on what's going on with Congress, with uh the Pope uh program office uh memorandum uh process, which is how the government is funded. Same thing with military departments. Uh so when I got here to Haymarket, moved from Springfield to Haymark for our final retirement, it turned out that there was a chapter of MOA at the local Gainesville uh location of Heritage Hunt, which is an hoa that's pretty pretty big in terms of size.

Larry Zilliox:

Yeah.

Dennis Corrigan:

And and those so now there was a way to be with other individuals who who are veterans, who are retired. Uh we even have a couple of active duty individuals in the local area that are part of MOA. And so it the chapter here, so it was a chance to be with people and do things with people uh that were both uh fun and uh uh social things, but it also gave us a chance, gave me a chance to be more involved in giving back, still serving, if you would.

Larry Zilliox:

Sure, sure. So let's talk a little bit about the services that MOA provides to its members and to all veterans, which is one of the things that really attracted me to MOA. And I've had a number of guests who have been officers and are members of MOA and talked about how helpful the resources that MOA provided when they separated, as far as when it came to job seeking and resume building and and mentoring and things like that. And uh one of the things that I I would hear and I really thought was great is that while MOA is a Military Officers Association of America, membership is officers, the services that they provide are available to all veterans.

Dennis Corrigan:

That is absolutely correct.

Larry Zilliox:

Regardless of rank, you don't have to be an officer. If you need help and they uh can act as a resource, please reach out to them. So, what are some of the services that they provide?

Dennis Corrigan:

Big MOA provides scholarships for uh individuals who are family members of anyone tied to that litany of things, officers, veterans, uh enlisted ranks, whatever their connection to that one day of service in the military allows them to apply for that. That's a tremendous uh advantage for individuals. Some of them are grants, some of them are loans, but it's it makes no difference that there is still that resource available to them. The other thing that uh MOA does is try to protect and in some cases uh increase the amount of things that the veterans uh department of the U.S. government uh provides. So they're there to make sure that uh VA hospitals are funded, that people get their uh cola uh for their retired pay, uh making sure that there's equity in the way the military operates, that the uh especially for individuals who are um in other parts of the U.S. that aren't necessarily right here in the local DC area. Our MOA chapter here has continued the concept of scholarships. Uh we seek all of the uh high schools that have a ROTC program. Okay our local high school, Battlefield High School, has an Air Force ROTC. And what we would like to help continue is individuals that are in an ROTC, a junior ROTC, be facilitated to to uh go to a regular four-year college and join an ROTC unit at that college and hopefully get commissioned as a ensign or second lieutenant in one of the other services. Sure. Because we feel like when we retired, it was a hole, and that a lot of people were right there to fill our holes. But who was going to fill the last man's hole or the last woman's hole? And then that was gonna have to come from the general population. And we haven't had a war in a long time. Um, we've had lots of conflicts, we've been in Afghanistan, we've been in Iraq, we've been those places. Um, but there's a lot of people, especially in Congress, that have never had a day of service, have never been involved in a day of service. Uh and providing that resource for them is an important aspect of getting things passed. We are a nonpartisan organization. We like to talk to every political organization about who we are, what we are, what we need, and what support they can provide. And you're seeing that uh uh more and more often. And that's why MOA's um efforts to provide legislators with the information they need is important. Uh, the chapter here is at the next level down. While we do support MOA uh efforts in legislation, there is governmental things in Virginia that require uh military-familiar individuals to be a part of. And so in Virginia, there's a a uh Virginia Council of Councils. So our chapter is considered a council, and we support the group that's is in Richmond, uh providing them with the funds and the personnel support to storm uh the legislature to talk about the things in a nonpartisan way that helps them to make a better decision. And if that better decision protects benefits or as benefits are required, the PAC Act, uh, which occurred some years ago, MOA was heavily involved in that, and we were heavily involved from a council point in making sure that our own uh Commonwealth uh legislature was also ready to support that.

Larry Zilliox:

So that is a such an important aspect of the work that MOA does is policy, and trying to develop policy guidelines for not only federal but state and local um governments because all of the benefits that veterans have came because of American Legion, the VFW, MOA, uh Iraq, Afghanistan Veterans Association. These are all organizations that you can join and be a member of and pay dues, and those dues support the lobbying and the policy assistance that these organizations give to legislators to get benefits for you. So I know a lot of folks think that uh all of this takes place on a federal level and it's all about Congress, but there are so many rules and regulations and laws that affect veterans on a state level. For instance, here in Virginia, if you're a veteran and you have 100% disability, you don't you don't pay tax on your home. And the only reason that law is in place is because veteran organizations pushed for it. That's correct. It's not because legislators just woke up one day and said, Oh, you know, let's just give veterans who are 100% disabled, let's just give them a tax break on their home. Well, they don't want to give any money away ever. So uh keep that in mind when you think about these organizations, and especially if you're an officer out there, you need to belong to MOA. You need to go to the webpage moaa.org and take a look and register, pay your dues, and uh be part of this organization because it supports not only you and your fellow officers, but it supports through making resources available and helping all veterans, it supports those that were under your command, that you took an oath to guide and and lead. And here's a choice chance for you to continue to do that for those men and women that that worked under you when you were an officer. And so uh if you don't want to join, hit that donate button. Give, give whatever you can ten bucks, a hundred bucks, thousand bucks. Uh this work to lobby on in all 50 states and on a national level is not cheap. And it you can't do it uh with volunteers and you can't do it with wishful thinking. So please um join MOA, M-O-AA.org.org, join or donate. And if you're a veteran, and especially if you need transitional assistance, especially when it comes to mentorship, uh resources for locating a job, resume building, interview techniques and and and everything that you need, check out the MOA webpage because they have a tremendous amount of resources. And then there's also a way to find a chapter in your local area. And when you find that chapter, reach out to them, explain your situation, tell them what you're having trouble with, and I guarantee you they'll help. And if they can't help, they will find somebody who can help. And um so as we kind of wrap things up, uh Dennis, what's the I have one other thing that I'd like to mention.

Dennis Corrigan:

Okay. That uh we're talking about uh stuff that happens when you're living. At our particular chapter here, we also have an individual who's trained to assist families in need at the time when death has occurred. Yeah. And that that transition for those individuals, sometimes, especially when we're all the way out in Haymarket, it's not like there's a base real close. Um and so we maintain that capability. And and some of the others do as well. The uh American Legion, the VFW, uh, for instance, both have uh uh service officers that uh take and help families through that. And we are no different. Uh the other aspect of it is it. If an individual, male or female, is a veteran officer, then they can belong to MOA, as Larry has talked about. When that member goes away or goes past, uh the surprising spouse is made a member, an auxiliary member, but she has or he has, depending on which way, uh, has the chance to join in the social, be a part of the discussion about uh benefits, uh what we do uh to support benefits so that they don't go away or if they need to be increased. Uh and and that's a function that we find in the chapter. All this stuff is personal. You don't want to be on the phone with this. We we sit right next to the the family. We help them do the the paperwork, understand the benefits, because I found personally that there's a lot of people who pass that haven't told their wife, haven't made a will, haven't given instructions on on what they would like to see uh after their death. Uh-huh. And hopefully they are looking down rather than looking up. Uh so that that part of it I think is a really important part that I found important, especially when I was uh involved in some of those kind of things.

Larry Zilliox:

Well, it is important because the benefits that a veteran is receiving cease when when they pass, but there are additional benefits available through the VA for that veteran spouse or family. Um and they don't actually even have to be a member of any organization, they don't even have to be service-connected disability, they just need to be a veteran. And in fact, you know, if you've got an aunt or an uncle who is a veteran and they've passed, you you can call a local MOA chapter and say, you know, Uncle Dave passed. Right. And Aunt Betty, uh, he he never received any veteran benefits, but I understand that my my aunt may be eligible for some. And how does she get those? And there's somebody at the MOA chapter that will walk them through that, that has experience, that knows what's available, um, because it's hard. Dealing with the VA is hard for almost everybody. And and so when you can bring a professional into the process, that's not only going to get you but what you need, but also make sure that you're getting everything and you're entitled to, um, which often you just get what you ask for and you don't know what you don't know. And so that's an amazing service, I think, um, because it it really is a time when things are so unsettled. And and also some relatives want their veteran interned at a national cemetery because the VA will pay for that, you know, because a funeral is expensive. And so um, yeah, I think that's an amazing service, really.

Dennis Corrigan:

And I think you've heard this story, but just for your uh listeners to know that uh here we have a local cemetery that's a public for-profit cemetery that had 32 members, 33 members that had no grave marker. And it turned out that those 33 were military veterans. So the American Legion here and in Manassas and a couple of other American Legions have worked diligently to get uh headstones to not only reflect the name and the states of birth and but also to reflect that they're a military veteran, which is something that the VA provides free of charge for every headstone that a veteran uh should have. Yeah. And that's that's a big effort. Uh you know, it's still serving those who served and passed away is an important aspect of what we do in the local environment.

Larry Zilliox:

Sure, yeah. Well, listeners, please go to the webpage moa.org, check it out. If you are an officer, join. No excuse. You gotta join. At a minimum, donate. Uh, if you need help with transitioning, check out the resources. Um, you know, it's a great organization, and it's been around for a long time. And I know I have seen MOA reps at Building 62, uh at Walter Reed, just sitting around in the lobby, talking to people and come down. What are you doing? Are you gonna separate soon? Have you thought about what you're gonna do after you get out? You know, we're we're here to help. We're here. And they're just sitting around in suits in the lobby of Building 62. And I I saw them a number of times when we were up there, and I thought, well, who are those guys? And then finally started talking to one of them, and they just come and they sit and they look for officers and talk to the guys that are there, part of the soldier recovery unit, about whether they're gonna go before the med board, when they're getting out, what what they offer, that kind of thing. It was really, it was really great to see because it was such a laid-back casual approach, you know. Um but as we kind of wrap things up, what's the what's the most important thing you want people to know, our listeners to know about MOA?

Dennis Corrigan:

They're nonpartisan, so that that puts them in the middle. They're able to talk to everyone, um, they're able to use their knowledge of the system, whether it's that works which works in Congress or and on the Commonwealth or state level, uh, that they're compassionate, they're they're enthusiastic about uh assisting. They believe in the in the watch phrase still serving. Now, because like you said before, uh many of the officers were in charge of other men and women. And we've never lose sight of trying to take care of them. And that has been the reason I was I'm part of the MOA uh community as well as the other ones. I think that uh spreading my time over the American Legion, the Knights of Columbus, uh VFW, and MOA are my four passionate type of outreach efforts. So I thank you for having me today. I love talking about what's important to me. And I I really, though, support this particular William Warrior Retreat Center. And I think it's true, and you can correct me if I'm wrong. You know, we lose 19 to 22 individuals every day who have lost the faith that they're important, that they have a role in the world after having served so um distinguishedly in uh in the service. And the people who come here get reunited with that bond of a family can provide that prevents that. And I think that's important. And that's why this place is important to me.

Larry Zilliox:

Well, we we really appreciate your support. We can't thank you enough. And thanks for coming on and telling us about MOA. I've wanted to do an episode about MOA for quite some time. I um haven't met the guys at Building 62, had a few um guests who are MOA members. I knew uh, especially I so like the idea that resources are available to all veterans, regardless of rank. Um, I think that is really uh really awesome. Um, so you know, thank you so much for joining us.

Dennis Corrigan:

You're welcome and thank you for having me.

Larry Zilliox:

Well, listeners, we'll have another episode next Monday morning at 0500. And if you have any questions or suggestions, you can reach us at podcast at willingwarriors.org. We're available on all major podcast platforms on our YouTube channel or Reese Across America. So thanks for listening.

Head Shot

Larry Zilliox

Host