When tornadoes ripped through Moore, Okla., on May 20, Daniel Dashiell and his family lost their home, cars and all of their possessions. He was out of town when the tornado hit, but quickly made his way home after hearing on the radio that the tornado had touched down in his family’s hometown. Upon arrival, he was devastated to see the destruction and chaos left behind.
As he made his way to where his house had been, he was relieved to find his wife Melissa and their two children had made it through the storm in their tornado shelter located under the garage. Immediately after finding his own family, Daniel helped dig multiple neighbors from the rubble surrounding them while waiting on first responders to make it to the scene.
The Dashiell family stayed with friends for a week while searching for a new home. They heard about VFW’s Unmet Needs Program through the Family Readiness Center at Tinker Air Force Base where Daniel is an Active Duty Technical Sergeant. After an hour of applying for assistance, they had immediate access to grants that helped sustain them with food and clothing until their insurance claim was processed.
“When Melissa and I learned that the loan had in fact become a grant we just cried and became overwhelmed with relief,” said Daniel. “I would have to rate my experience with Unmet Needs as absolutely priceless and I can't wait [until] we can pay it forward.”
Since 2004, VFW’s Unmet Needs Program has provided over 3,200 emergency financial grants for military families during troubling times.
To learn more about the Unmet Needs Program or other VFW National Military Assistance programs,click here.