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Alexandria Chamber of Commerce Salute to Veterans keynote speaker, Captain McDaniel addressing the crowd.
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Casey Lindsay, Captain McDaniel, Mike McDaniel, and Jim Lindsay. Casey & Jim Lindsay work for ACCfamily, an organization founded by Captain McDaniel to provide homecare for seniors in Alexandria.
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Vice Mayor Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, Councilwoman Amy Jackson, members of the American Legion Post 24, and Former Mayor Allison Silberberg.
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Jeanne Theismann alongside members of American Legion Post 24 and Bill Reagan applauding the Salute to Veterans keynote presenter.
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Marion Brunken of Volunteer Alexandria, Councilwoman Amy Jackson, and Alexandria Chamber of Commerce 2019 Board Chair Charlotte Hall.
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United States Army Military District of Washington (MDW) Navy Color Guard presenting and retiring colors at the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce’s Salute to Veterans event.
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Allen Brooks and Brad Halsey, of Building Momentum, accepting the Small Veteran Owned Business of the Year Award alongside Alexandria Chamber President & CEO Joe Haggerty.
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Kristina Kauffman of Code of Support Foundation accepting the Business Empowering and Supporting Veterans Award alongside Joe Haggerty.
As a prison of war at the “Hanoi Hilton” (Hoa Lo prison) during the Vietnam War, Capt. Eugene “Red” McDaniel lost almost everything, but his captors could not take away his will to believe. His faith, creativity and belief carried him through his most brutal times in his six years as a POW until his release in 1973.
Capt. McDaniel put a new perspective on the daily struggles of business owners in Alexandria at the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Salute to Veterans Wednesday morning at the Belle Haven Country Club. He was honored, along with several other businesses for their contributions to the community. McDaniel, resumed his military duties after his release, retired after 28 years in the military.
Once he settled in the Mount Vernon area, he wrote a book, “Scars and Stripes,” and founded the American Defense Institute, a nonprofit that provides citizen education and leadership training along with focusing public attention on American servicemen who are still missing in Southeast Asia. Capt. McDaniel founded Adult Companion Care (now known as ACCfamily, Inc.) in 1994.
In addition to thanking McDaniel for his service to country and community, the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce honored several other veteran business owners and heroes who have made a difference.
Ret. Col. Kim Ching received the 2019 Distinguished Patriot Award for his nearly 40 years of service through World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. He received a Bronze Star, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Joint Commendation Medal and several other awards for his work in intelligence and expertise in Far East Asian languages and culture. He contributed his skills to Operation Homecoming, the operation for returning Prisoners of War from North Vietnam, and in retirement served as a volunteer translator for various government organizations. He is retired and living at Greenspring Retirement Community in Springfield.
Other awards went to the following businesses for their contributions to the veteran and business communities in the Alexandria area:
The Garden by Building Momentum, a service-disabled veteran-owned small business, is a training organization, co-working space, makerspace and more. It has trained more than 1,400 active duty service members and focuses on innovative solution-finding. The company won Small Veteran Owned Business of the Year.
ProSphere, an enterprise IT solutions and services provider, is a highly-ranked military-friendly employer and nearly 20 percent of their team has served in the armed forces. ProSphere won the award for Large Veteran Owned Business of the Year.
The Code of Support Foundation won the Empowering & Supporting Veterans Award. The nonprofit organization provides assistance to military service members, veterans and their families with casework, online networking and outreach efforts.
