Creekside Terrace Honors Veterans
Our veterans make up an important part of our community.
At Creekside Terrace, we honor and embrace several elements that make retirement living fulfilling and joyful. Our activities embrace physical, intellectual, social, emotional, creative, spiritual and vocational components. Within the realm of involvement, there’s one more thing that stands out — our veterans.
One of these men was resident, Coy Mason. Coy was born and raised in Franklin County, VA on February 4, 1933. He remembers working as a furniture inspector in Rocky Mount, VA at Baldknob Furniture the day he was drafted into the Army. It was 1954. Within one day, Coy was on a Greyhound bus to Roanoke for physical examinations and then off to Ft. Jackson, SC. He remembers feeling homesick before he even left home, as he was leaving behind his wife, Lola, and their three week old baby. After three days at Ft. Jackson, Coy was off to Camp Gordon, GA for infantry basic training for eight weeks. After several other transfers and more training, including the Basic Army Administration Course (BAAC), Coy was off to Pusan, Korea. “We had two enemies: North Korea and the weather,” Coy jokes. “It was the coldest place I’ve ever been, but snow, sleet, whatever, you’ve still got to be out there.” Coy spent six years in the service.
Today, you will find Coy spending time with his wife and friends at Creekside Terrace. They tap their toes during our music events, share stories with friends on the porch, and even entertain us with their own musical talent. Coy plays the fiddle, while Lola plays the guitar, and they put on quite the old time country music show. Coy adds, “I’m a survivor of a quadruple bypass, pneumonia and a stroke. I’m a walking miracle… but I’m still here!”
Coy’s story is just one of the many special veteran stories within our walls at Creekside Terrace. We are taking the next few months to honor not just our Creekside veterans, but other heroes as well. We are currently accepting donations for the Outward Bound for Veterans program. Outward Bound helps veterans to build the pride, trust, and communication skills needed to properly readjust to their families, jobs and communities. We encourage sponsorship at any level. Even $10 can help send our veterans through wilderness courses that draw upon teamwork and challenge to promote healing processes. It is our hope that we can send over 600 veterans through the Outward Bound for Veterans program by raising $1.2 million to help them readjust to their surroundings and home life.
To learn more about Outward Bound for Veterans, or to make a donation, please visit www.holidaytouch.com/outwardbound or call 1-866-467-7651 and be sure to mention Creekside Terrace as the associated community.
