Operation Heartland 2017Honoring the fallen - Fighting for the living

Mission Statement:

On 1 September 2017 a team of veterans will kick-off Operation Heartland by paddling the entire 2,350 miles of the Mississippi River (Please reference Figure “A” for the intended route). This operation will start in Lake Itasca Minnesota and end on nautical mile marker 0 in the Gulf Ports of Southern Louisiana.

Why Are We Doing This?We Have Four Initiatives:

1. Raise awareness on the staggering number of suicides in the veteran community• Issues surrounding PTSD & TBI • On-going alternative medical care

2. Re-integration back into civilian social settings- How to become a veteran (for both combat and non-combat veterans)

3. Fundraising mark of two million dollars- Please see donation hand-out for a complete description of how the funds will be spent.

4. Provide link-up points for veterans and the general community to meet out on the water and rally’s

What We NeedPersonnel Support:

As with any undertaking of this magnitude there is a need for a core team. I am reaching out not only for advice on sponsorship and fundraising events, but in the hope a few people would like to join the team as project coordinators and planners. I have outlined a few key positions that will be instrumental to the success of the mission.

1. Project Coordinator/Paddler- Daniel Schenstrom (Operation Heartland/Mission 22 Amb.)2. Social Media Director- OPHL, Mission 22 Team, VAG, Veteran Voyage 3603. Planner/Logistics/Paddle Team 1- Justin Metincof (Veteran Adventure Group)4. Planner/Logistics /Paddle Team 2- Jessie Lee Venable 5. Logistics/Driver- Bill Venable 6. Ambassadors- Mission 22, Gold Star Mothers, Blue Star Mothers, etc.

More Of What We Need

Equipment Mobilization & Stabilization

After all gear has been acquired, inspected and logged it will be shipped 2 weeks prior to the operational start dates closet ambassador’s . At which time the ambassador will inspect the shipping condition for any damages or potential issues. If any shipping issues do exist the team will make all necessary corrections to not push back the estimated start date.

All personnel will be transported to the St. Paul Airport from there designated locations and then transported to the Lake Itasca starting point for roll call and check in. After the paddle challenge has been completed on Mile Marker 0 in New Orleans, said personnel will be transported within 48 hours (unless medical issues prevent) to their home of residence.

Support ServiceMinimal provisions will be kept with the paddling team, the paddling team will keep at minimum 3 days of rations/water at all time in case of emergencies. All re-supply of food and water will take place in pre-determined stretches of the Mississippi were it is not feasible to reach a local store on foot or in outlining towns along the river banks.

All accommodations will be set forth as a “Wilderness Style” (i.e. camping, hunker down, etc.) or open home policy. The only time that the paddler will opt for emergency accommodations is if extreme weather conditions are forecasted by the National Weather Station or Coast Guard Channel Support. Examples of extreme weather conditions will be as follow:

1. Flash Floods 2. Tornados 3. Hurricanes 4. Wind Gust (+50 MPH)

a. Note- If paddle team arrives into an emergency situation all attempts will be made to reach local support on either sat phone communications or the local Coast Guard Station on the pre-determined radio frequency.

i. If communication cannot be made, the paddler(s) will find the closest form of solid structures and wait out the storm. Once the storm has passed communication will be engaged to update the team.

The Route Map

Time Line

• Day 0- Headwaters of the Mississippi River. Rally Point 1 September 2017 • Day 16- St. Paul Minn. Rally Point 16 September 2017- Mission 22• Day 24- Davenport Iowa Rally Point 24 September 2017• Day 31- St. Louis Mo. Rally Point 1 October 2017 • Day 42- Memphis Tenn. Rally Point 12 October 2017- VAG & Mission 22• Day 49- Jackson Miss. Rally Point 19 October 2017• Day 53- Baton Rouge La. Rally Point 23 October 2017 • Day 57- New Orleans La. Rally Point 27 October 2017- All groups guest speaker Josh Collins• Day 60- Ending Point Rally Point 30 October 2017

Additional time has been built into the schedule due to weather delays and unforeseen issues. OPHL is also open to more rally points for events, link-ups and fundraisers. All Lat. Points will be given to planners and logistic personnel.

Estimated Op. Gear-up Schedule

Prep. Time

Sponsorship

Training

Paddling Time

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

Time Table

Time Table

Donation/Fundraising Ops.

• Goal:

To raise 2 million dollars

• How?

Individuals, businesses and sponsors will donate .5 cents a mile or a lump sum donation, amounting to $117

• Marketing:

Social media, organizational drives and direct events

With the power of some good old fashion networking and boots on the ground we can reach the 17,095 people needed to reach the fundraising goal of $2,000,000.00!

Disclaimer- None of the donations will go towards the trip cost, rather project team member(s) will be reaching out the others for private sponsorship or self-funding the trip.

Flag Placement “Honoring our Fallen” is the very simple statement that shows the reasoning behind the flag placement. In the last 15 years there has been roughly 6,852 combat related deaths on the War on Terror. The flags will be designed in the form of an American Flag; amongst the 13 stripes the initials of each US Service Member will be engraved (roughly 155 per a flag) to represent the ultimate sacrifice they have given to this country. Once all production is completed of this phase of the project and the determined locations have been approved, the flags will be shipped to the closets ambassador for safe keeping.

The goal of the placement is to have the flags placed within a 25 mile radius of the Mississippi River and an official marker will be placed on a map to commemorate this group. Team members from Operation Heartland will reach out to Ambassadors from other veteran service organizations to assist in the approval and placement process. Placement guidelines will be suggested to the ambassadors as listed below:

1. Preference Placement:a. In the town of one of the fallen service membersb. VFW’s c. American Legions d. Town Hall’s e. Parks f. Misc. g. Lock & Dam stations if approved

Non-Profit Coordination (To date)

Will you take up the cause to end the war at home?