During the first half of 2023, Operation Red, White and Brave has poured over $20,000 into projects to help veterans and their families, and more are planned in the months ahead.

The projects range from constructing wheelchair ramps at the homes of veterans to placing flagpoles at the homes of families who lost a loved one while in service. Another project helped a Clinton area veteran with improvements to his home.

“The ORWB mission is to honor veterans and active military while helping to address their needs and the needs of their families through physical assistance and financial support,” said Rebecca Barnard, board chairman of the ORWB Foundation. “We are excited about the projects we have undertaken this year.”

First Service Bank created ORWB in 2019 to support the bank’s vision as well as one of its core values – patriotism. In 2021, First Service partnered with Habitat for Humanity and communities across the state to raise $80,000 to build a house in Little Rock for a veteran. In August 2022, First Service Bank announced it was expanding ORWB to help more vets, active military and their families. 

In addition to providing volunteer manpower to support ORWB, the First Service Bank team actively raises money for the foundation through customer donations, special projects, and events like the inaugural ORWB gala held in June and the upcoming ORWB Golf Tournament. The ORWB Golf Tournament will take place on Monday, September 11, 2023, at the Country Club of Arkansas in Maumelle. Registration will open soon, so gather your friends and colleagues for a fun day of competition as we host a thrilling 4 Man Scramble. We are excited to announce First Service Bank matches dollar-for-dollar everything that is raised from these events. 

The ORWB Foundation has implemented an online nomination form to collect requests to help individuals who have a special need or a special wish requiring financial or physical assistance. (Visit https://firstservicebank.com/orwb to access the form.)

“The ORWB Foundation is committed to celebrating and assisting those who have served and are currently serving in the military as well as their loved ones,” said Rebecca. “We recognize that sometimes needs arise and ORWB wants to provide that help, where we can.”

The online submission form is easy to complete and includes just eight questions, including the nominee’s name, need or wish, and why they should be considered. Nominations are reviewed by the ORWB Foundation. “We will work to fulfill as many requests as we can,” said Rebecca.

For more information on Operation Red, White, and Brave or to support the program, visit firstservicebank.com/orwb.

“It is an honor to help the men and women who have served our country to protect the freedoms we hold so dearly,” said Rebecca.