Family creates retreat for all combat veterans
SPRINGVILLE, Tenn. — Residents across West Tennessee came together to support the Darkhorse Lodge, a nonprofit retreat for combat veterans young and old.
The Catherwood family, leaders of the organization, say the lodge was built to honor their son, those who lost their lives in Afghanistan and members of his battalion who committed suicide.
“This is a retreat for combat veterans. We’re not open yet. We hope to be probably next summer, summer of 2023. We have 25 guest rooms, each one named for one of the marines that was killed in our son’s unit during 2010,” said members of the the Catherwood family.
The Catherwoods say they want to help the veterans that came home with nowhere else to go because it’s what they would have wanted for their son.
“We will take combat veterans from all branches of services, all wars and conflicts, and just give them a place to hang out, communicate with other people who’ve been where they’ve been and give them a place to kind or relax for a week free of charge. Take them fishing on the lake to just breathe, you know,” said members of the the Catherwood family.
The organization raised over $900,000 in donations.
“Mostly it’s blue collar folks, just $5 here and $10 there. That’s a pretty formidable thing when you get all the normal folks together and that’s what they done,” said members of the the Catherwood family.
The family says it’s easy to give up, but they try to find purpose in everything even if it happens to be the loss of their son.
“Staying in bed and pulling the covers over my head will be really easy to do. You know this is hard. It gives us a purpose. It gives us a reason to be here cause some of our purpose died with our son,” said members of the the Catherwood family.
To find out more information on how you can be involved visit, darkhorselodge.org for more information.
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