Daniel Reed - Elkhart Veterans Stand Down

The seventh Elkhart Veteran Stand Down was held on May 13, 2022.

During the Opening ceremony Daniel Reed DVOP was recognized for starting the Elkhart Stand Down with a framed drawing of a soldier in the jungle.

Daniel Reed had participated in the St. Joseph County Stand Downs for the two previous years and witnessed the changes that it could and did make in Veterans lives. He recognized the need for a Stand Down in Elkhart County. In 2014 he approached the Veteran Service Officer in Elkhart County at the time, VSO Lundy. Together they went to the Goshen DAV and brought the idea to them. The first Veterans Stand Down in Elkhart was held in 2015.

A group of DAV members joined in and they created a committee with Daniel Reed in the lead. Together they brought about the 2015 Stand Down.

During the ceremony Daniel Reed stated “I did not do this on my own. If it were not for these Veterans that seen the same vision that I did, it would still be no more than an idea.”

Daniel Reed, Ernie Rivas, and Craig Stiver are still involved with the Elkhart County Stand Down.

The list of Stand Downs facilitated by this committee (now run by Jill Powers) are now up to six Stand Downs.

Visit Dan Reed tomorrow July 22, 2022 at the Warsaw Veterans Stand Down.