Melwood Veterans Services wins Vetty Award for Helping Female Veterans and Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma

WASHINGTON, DC, January 18, 2020 – Melwood Veterans Services (MVS) was recently honored with the Academy of United States Veterans (AUSV) coveted Suffragette award for its groundbreaking Operation Tohidu® retreats that provide care, support, and empowerment for female veterans and those who have experienced military sexual trauma.

“These veterans have dedicated their lives to protecting us, so Melwood Veteran Services is dedicated to helping them move forward from their service experiences with renewed positivity and pride,” said Retired Brigadier General David Blackledge who himself was wounded twice in Iraq and often speaks about his personal struggle with post-traumatic stress.

MVS’s signature program, Operation Tohidu® offers a series of week-long healing retreats in Southern Maryland with specialized retreats for men, women, couples, and survivors of military sexual trauma. Operation Tohidu® retreats help veterans and active-duty military cope with post-traumatic stress, military sexual trauma, mild to moderate brain injury, and other service-related traumas, such as moral injury. This experiential program focuses on confidence building, outdoor activities, and group discussion to help warriors, their spouses, and caregivers overcome obstacles to their recovery. For more information about Operation Tohidu® and MVS, please visit: https://www.melwood.org/veterans-services/for-veterans/operation-tohidu.

MVS is a division of the nonprofit Melwood that has been supporting the independence and inclusion of people of differing abilities and injured veterans since 1963.

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About Melwood
Melwood is one of the largest employers of individuals of differing abilities in the country and offers workforce solutions to private businesses and government agencies. Melwood currently employs more than 1,600 workers nearly 1,000 of whom are people of differing abilities – while offering job placement, job training, life skills for independence, and support services to thousands of people each year in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. For more information, visit http://www.melwood.org.