A Veterans Day Message from BVA Executive Director Donald D. Overton, Jr. 

Veterans Day is a special day for all of us who have served our country on the battlefield. It is special to us also because of our affiliation with the Blinded Veterans Association (BVA).  

No matter where I am each year on this day, I always contemplate the service and the sobering sacrifices of the veterans I have known personally. Last year, I found myself thinking even more than usual about the men and women who served and whose sacrifice is even more immense. Many of them I have met quite recently through my work with BVA. Many of them I also now consider close friends. 

This November 11, I will be participating in the annual Veterans Day Observance at Arlington National Cemetery’s Memorial Amphitheater with members of our headquarters staff. Also participating will be two members of our Mid-Atlantic Regional Group who live close to us here in the National Capital Area. With the help of sighted guides, they will march with 60-70 other veterans in a procession of colors as bearers of both the nation’s flag and our organization flag. Following the Amphitheater program, we will present a BVA wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  

The mood of Veterans Day can be somber but uplifting at the same time as we reverently think about those with whom we served on active duty, or with whom we now serve in responsibilities such as mine as BVA’s Executive Director.  

This year, I’m including in those thoughts an inspirational blinded veteran, a special person with whom I’ve become acquainted the past couple of years. He is 93-year-old Army veteran Enrique Sanchez of the Bronx, New York, a Mexican-born naturalized U.S. citizen. Three months ago in August, Enrique attended an unprecedented 47th consecutive BVA National Convention, where we awarded him with the organization’s Circle of Excellence award. While his mobility may not be exactly as it was just a few years ago, Enrique still has the same enthusiasm and interest he did when associating with his fellow veterans at the first convention he attended back in 1976. 

One of Enrique’s greatest trials in life was undoubtedly the shock of losing his sight with much of his life still ahead of him. Thanks to personal determination and some excellent support networks such as BVA, he made needed adjustments and carved out the road to a successful life. To learn how he did this, click here. 

Because BVA receives no federal funding of any kind and relies solely on the kindness and generosity of the American public, the available help is dependent on the financial support the Association receives.  

With Veterans Day upon us this weekend, would you please consider a donation to BVA? Our hope is that many other veterans like Enrique who have given so much to our country, only to experience a devastating loss of sight, may rediscover new potential in themselves and what they are capable of accomplishing. Your support now will make possible the fulfillment of that hope for veterans of all eras of service. 

Sincerely, 

Donald D. Overton, Jr. 

Executive Director