VETERAN LEGACY PROJECT
“The intention is catharsis for the veteran but also for the family to understand
what the veteran went through.”
DOC MCCARVILLE Saying and Saving T
he teamwork of two perfectly-matched members of Auxiliary 3513, Scottsdale, Arizona, is ensuring both a historical legacy and a healing modality for veterans and their families. Mary Michelle McCarville and Chris Anderson developed the Arizona Veteran Legacy Project and proceeded to devote hundreds of hours to videotaping interviews with veterans about their military service and how it impacted the rest of their lives. They interviewed relatives and other civilians as well, including the spouse of a Vietnam veteran suffering from PTSD who committed suicide and a civilian in London during World War II bombings.
For their efforts, the Auxiliary was awarded a $1,000 Challenge Grant from CVS Caremark
26 LADIES AUXILIARY VFW MAGAZINE
Charitable Trust in November. McCarville, who is a Pharmacy Advisor for CVS Caremark in Scottsdale, wrote their grant application.
But money is not what motivates these two. “We do it because we love it and we have a passion for it,” Anderson said. She is a manager of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s Ozanam Manor, a transitional homeless shelter in Phoenix, where about half of the residents are veterans. Both women grew up listening to their fathers’ World War II stories of military life. During lunch one day, Anderson’s father remarked on the 1,200 to 1,300 veterans dying each day and wondered aloud, “Who’s going to tell their story?” “Well, I can,” said the daughter who loved research, particularly the military variety. Eventually,
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