Homeward Bound USA, DBA Homeward Bound Adirondacks, has been serving veterans primarily in northern New York since 2014. Since then, the organization has been providing retreats to aid the effects of PTSD as well as other mental health issues on a regular basis.

Homeward Bound’s first retreat was held in 2015, a winter family weekend for active duty soldiers and their families from Fort Drum. Since January 2023, they have held at least one event per month, helping over 400 veterans. These are consistently well-received; many participants claim that the weekends were “life-changing experiences.”

Last year the veteran group “Leatherstocking” helped sponsor a few events in and around Piseco, New York at the Irondequoit Inn. There was also a retreat this past summer hosting 25 Vietnam-era veterans. Retreats feature hiking, canoeing, team building exercises, and in the winter months, ice fishing, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing are some of the activities offered to the vets. Equine-assisted PTSD workshops are also a highlight.

With help from donors, HBA purchased 105 acres of wilderness land in the Adirondacks just south of Malone. The ambitions for this purchased land include building some cabins and a lodge/retreat center to continue HBA’s mission of serving and accommodating veterans.

During the weekend of July 9-11, 2023, a group of veterans got together and built four tent platforms on the new property near one of the ponds. Phase 1 on the property is completed, which entails implementing electrical and water service to the property, as well as building a storage shed onsite. Generously donated as part of this phase were a front gate and a memorial garden with a flagpole. Phases 2 and 3, which will be implemented next, include a utility building, well installation, a handicap-accessible cabin as well as three other cabins, and the main lodge. This and other Homeward Bound projects are possible due to the generous grants and donations received from supporters.

As of September 2023, Homeward Bound Adirondacks drivers have driven over 3,000 miles transporting veterans to medical and mental health appointments, emergency outreach and referral services, as well as to the aforementioned retreats. This all at no cost to the participant. Executive Director Valerie Ainsworth states: “The peer-to-peer component of Homeward Bound is the lifeline of the organization and is what we have built so much of our success on.”

The Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program is a pilot community-based program which will allow Homeward Bound to provide suicide prevention services to veterans in Franklin, Clinton, Essex, Hamilton, and St. Lawrence counties.

There is a growing need for the services provided by Homeward Bound and other like-minded services. Homeward Bound Adirondacks is honored to be involved and actively supporting our veterans.

Homeward Bound Adirondacks is a community-based 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization which is headquartered at 24 Depot St., Saranac Lake. If you’d like to learn more about HBA, please visit www.homewardboundadirondacks.org. You can also reach them at P.O. Box 1100, Saranac Lake, NY 12983 or at 518-354-5144.

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Sophie Morelli works for the New York Farm Bureau and lives in Saratoga.