Living in the comfort of our homes, sleeping soundly at night, waking up in a comfortable bed every day, enjoying favorite meals with loved ones, stepping out, and breathing freely.
This may not sound like a luxury to many, but for the military personnel, this is way more than luxury. It is what these brave individuals crave every day. Yet, they stay resilient and determined to provide the people who take their ‘freedom’ for granted a safe place to live their lives. People are breathing freely and living without a care in the world about a war breaking out or an attack of enemies because these strong military forces are defending their homeland.
Many people may lose their sanity if they go through even a fraction of what the soldiers have to endure daily. The moment they close their eyes for a slumber, they know they might not be able to see the next dawn. This is the kind of uncertainty they have to live through.
Losing their fellow soldiers, imprisonment in a foreign land, getting lost in deep forests, close encounters with death, and witnessing the horrors of war, it is common for military veterans to return home broken, physically, emotionally, and mentally. The time they serve on duty scars them for life. Only a few are able to return to the civilian lifestyle; others suffer throughout the remaining years of their lives. Some of these veterans are too broken to be fixed; they are well aware of that, and taking their own lives is what they believe is the cure to their pain.
After the end of their duty or retirement, military veterans deserve to be welcomed as heroes. They require support after serving their country for decades. Thankfully, there are many nonprofits dedicated to improving the lives of veterans; the Bailey brothers have come up with a different approach through their Australia-based fundraising platform, Classics for a Cause.
Founded by Edward and Tom Bailey, Classics For a Cause attracts classic car lovers and channels their admiration into funds that help veterans take care of their health, including both mental and physical. It is crucial for veterans to take care of their health. If these health problems, especially their mental state, are left unaddressed, it leads them into a very dark place that gives birth to suicidal thoughts. Classics For a Cause focuses solely on equipping veterans with the required knowledge about their health and providing them access to quality healthcare.
WHAT MAKES IT DIFFERENT?
Classics For a Cause brings an entirely different approach to fundraising for veterans while giving a chance to ‘punters’ to win a classic car. The Bailey brothers are classic car fanatics and decided to leverage this love into something that would benefit those in need, especially those who have spent the better part of their lives serving the nation. The platform announces giveaways every month where a winner gets a classic car. While offering automotive discounts on car maintenance or restoration with an entry into the giveaway, this platform dedicates a portion of its profits to charities.
This innovative approach to fundraising allows these brothers to channel their love for classics the right way. Doing something they love while making this world a better place for the national heroes is what sets this fundraising platform apart from the other mainstream veteran organizations. This platform supports a number of charities for veterans, including Heroes on the Homefront (HOTH), The Survive to Thrive Program, PTSD Dog’s Australia, Young Veterans, and several others.
THE BEGINNING
In 2015, Edward and Tom Bailey started an online veteran community hub, Veterans Mindfulness Australia, to assist veterans access free health services while raising mental health awareness. This community was established after Tom’s best friend Kerry, a veteran, committed suicide after returning from service. This was when Tom realized the significance of spreading awareness about veterans’ mental health. Since then, Tom and Edward, through this platform, assisted thousands of veterans every month. This community offered veterans meditation sessions, therapy, theory, and mindfulness lessons. In addition, it is free for eligible veterans. But while the brothers operated this platform, they realized there were veterans who could not afford to be a part of this community.
This was when they conceptualized Classics For a Cause. In 2019, they founded the fundraiser to assist veterans who could not access these programs and provide funds to further raise awareness and funding for mental health programs. Initially, both brothers worked from a small home office; today, it works wonders for the veteran community.
A BETTER WORLD FOR THE VETERANS
Classics For Cause has successfully donated over $ 1 million within its first ten months, a huge milestone for the company. Tom Bailey, the co-founder and CEO stated, “we had never seen numbers like that before, and it was an awesome number to hit after not even a year of operating – we knew from that point we’re really onto something good and going to make a big impact in the veteran community.” Tom and Edward have huge plans for this platform. When asked about the future of Classics, Tom stated, “we hope to donate over 10million dollars to veteran charities and continue to help thousands of veterans every month with all their health needs. To give away over 40 classic cars a year back to our supporters.” He added, “we want to open five veteran super clinics in the Southeast Queensland area and help more veterans with their healthcare needs on a face-to-face basis. Build 10 more veteran medical vans and service veterans in rural and remote areas. Pattern and build 4 veteran hospitals to service veterans with higher clinical needs with inpatient and outpatient programs.”
Not only does Classics gives away more cars than any other company, but it also donates more to charity. To ensure effectiveness, the team at Classics is directly involved with the charities to ensure they are helping Aussie veterans in the most optimal way possible. Undoubtedly, Classics For a Cause is bringing an entirely new concept into fundraising, contributing significantly to reducing the number of veteran suicides in the country.
For more info, visit:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/classicsforacause123
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/classicsforacause/
TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@classicsforacause
Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/add/classics_au
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