Operation Veteran Payback Supports Barnesville Veteran
Operation Veteran Payback, an eastern Ohio nonprofit to support veterans, took a Barnesville veteran on a trip to Missouri to relax and spend quality time with fellow veterans.
As the nonprofit continues to help veterans in the area, it chose to take Benny Ankrom, a Vietnam veteran and officer at the Barnesville Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #2792, to Missouri for a deer hunt with another nonprofit based in Missouri that supports veterans, called MO Vets Outdoors, Inc.
“We pick a hunter to go on a hunt trip where they can enjoy the weekend and just focus on the great outdoors,” Commander of Operation Veteran Payback, Dirk Harkins of Adena said. “We know that’s a great relief for a lot of our veterans.”
Operation Veteran Payback, founded by Harkins, is a nonprofit group of veterans that started in the Ohio Valley but has board members across several states including Ohio, North Carolina to California.
The 501 c3 nonprofit is “dedicated to providing direct and hands on assistance to Veterans and First responders. We offer support services in recovery, reintegration, or renewed purpose”.
MO Vets is a nonprofit dedicated to providing a community that connects veterans to the outdoors and to each other. Its goal is to provide that single ray of hope that has a direct impact on the 22 Veteran suicides that take place daily. It is devoted to veteran mental health awareness and suicide prevention, according to its website.
MO Vets has been taking veterans on coyote, deer, duck and geese hunting trips since 2019. Harkins works with Tony Larson of MO Vets to help veterans.
Ankrom was one of 15 veterans participating in the trip. The Barnesville VFW provided a van for transportation, and Operation Veteran Payback covered the cost of his out-of-state hunting license. Another business supplied hot meals throughout the weekend while a taxidermist was also on site, offering a free mount to the veteran who brought back the biggest buck. The hunt took place last weekend from Friday through Sunday.
“It’s just a whole weekend of camaraderie,” Harkins said. “Just being in the great outdoors and whatever’s in your mind at that point in time, you really don’t think about. You’re just relaxing. You’re out there with a whole bunch of buddies who speak the same language, enjoying the weekend and just embracing each other.”
“The trip of a lifetime,” Ankrom said. “I really appreciate this trip.”
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