October 2010 - Parks & Recreation - 74

N R PA I n A c t i o n

Reaching Out to Wounded Warriors
The Secret of Fairfax County's Success
By Shelley R. O'Brien

T

he Fairfa x C ounty, Virginia, Department of Community and Recreation Services spent
six months planning and designing programming for members of the Warrior
Transition Unit or " WTU " at Fort Belvoir
in the Virginia suburbs outside of Washington D.C. They held focus groups and
asked for input on what physical and recreational activities the 140 " wounded
warriors " or injured service members
assigned to the WTU, were interested in
doing on a weekly basis while they were
waiting for a new military assignment or
integrating back into civilian life. There
was a lot of excitement and anticipation
for the first Thursday session of the eightweek physical recreation program.

Operation WOW participants and their mentors enjoy a day of golf at Burke Lake
Golf Course, part of the Fairfax County Park Authority.

Site Furnishings
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n	 Waste Containers
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Recycling Units * Waste Receptacles * Planters * Benches

And no one showed up.
Operation WOW (Wellness Opportunities for Warriors) program director
Evan Braff and program designer and
intern Mike Hartzell were, of course,
surprised. But that initial disappointment did not deter them from achieving
their program goal: getting injured service members to benefit from community recreation and physical activities. The
two men immediately moved into action
to gain the trust of potential participants.
They contacted WTU leadership, attended weekly meetings to develop relationships, created weekly schedules specific
to the WTU participants, and initiated a
mentor program. In short, Braff and Hartzell were dogged in their persistence.
For even the best designed recreation programs, the greatest challenge
often lies in effective outreach to the target populations. This is especially true of
programs for injured service members.
It's just not as simple as " If you build it,
they will come. " Hartzell, a 2010 graduate
of the School of Recreation and Tourism
at George Mason University, commented, " We had to implement a plan to get

circle 33 on product information form on page 103 and see us in minneapolis at booth #1557
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October 2010 - Parks & Recreation

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