For nearly 15 years, the Rotary Club of Austin, and the Rotary Club of Killeen (TX), have quietly brought respite to deserving active-duty Army soldiers and their families. No big hoopla, but a relaxing vacation weekend away at a quality Austin hotel. Officers at Fort Hood Army base in Killeen select an enlisted soldier, and Rotary provides the fun from there. Operation Vacation.
For 10 months every year many partners join to activate this meaningful project: Rotary Club of Killeen arranges a rental car from Killeen Toyota. The family drives to a select Austin hotel. Kids receive backpacks filled with toys, books, plush animals, and a new outfit or two. Mom and Dad receive $100 cash for incidentals, gift cards for food and stores, along with two nights of hotel accommodations with breakfasts and a guidebook to area events.
Families then shop, swim, sleep and savor time to hang out however they choose. “Many soldiers tell me this is their first vacation in Texas,” said Raymond Perez, member of Rotary Club of Killeen. From the beginning, Perez has coordinated the project with Rotary Club of Austin’s Community Service Director Mary Reynolds. “The partnership we have has been one of the greatest I’ve seen in my 36 years of Rotary involvement,” Perez said, adding, “My favorite part of the project is the happiness the soldier and his family find during this trip.” Passion for the project runs deep and drives Rotarians to engage with generous area businesses.
"When we started, I didn't have a family member in the military, but I felt it was important to honor those who serve,” Reynolds explained. “I had been operating a tour company, and I had connections with the Austin Hotel and Motel Association. So, I took the idea to a meeting of the general managers. I walked out with 12 weekend stays donated across the city that year." In later years Rotary eliminated the March and October months. With so many competing events going on, and traffic escalated in downtown Austin, no one needed the extra stress over getting there, Reynolds explained.
At the heart of the experience are Rotarians welcoming the families.
Volunteers are needed year-round. Rotarian Jeff Evins greeted an arriving family in August. It was his first such volunteer experience. He really enjoyed participating and representing the club, he said, and he will definitely volunteer for this 1 project again.
“I grew up in a military family and am a veteran myself. So, I appreciate that our Rotary Club sponsors this great program for military families. You never know what these families are going through,” Evins explained. “Several of our sponsored soldiers had just returned from overseas deployment. So, any hotel in Austin would feel like the Ritz and having some fun and relaxed vacation time means the world to them! The family in August had two small children and a dog. “The little girls loved the outfits that Rotary, and Mary Reynolds in particular, gave them. They did a little dance video for Mary to share with the club,” Evins said. “They were a bit stunned to be so well provided for.”
Rotarian Tom Anderson greeted a family earlier this summer. “The experience of meeting the families, who are pleasantly surprised and appreciative of what they are going to experience the next couple of days, is fun and rewarding,” he said. --Katy Campbell