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Veterans helping veterans: 'The camaraderie they share is next to nothing'

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Posted at 5:00 AM, Mar 30, 2022
and last updated 2022-03-30 15:06:13-04

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. — Partners in Care has been helping elderly adults remain independent since 1993.

They provide services like rides to the doctor or the grocery store.

"It’s not just a ride. It’s the fact you can call and say my sink broke or my... I need my yard mowed or whatever and it just keeps growing," said Nina Cleveland.

She found Partners in Care for her and her husband, Huey, after one of their four car accidents.

"He fell and by the accidents that he had it finally took the toll on him, so he has to have his walker," Nina Cleveland said.

Plus, she explained how he has some sort of condition with his brain where he can't remember much. Huey is a Navy Veteran, who served 21 years.

The Cleveland couple have been using Partners in Care for years. "They’ve done everything for us. They help us out," said Nina. "It is a family and when you need something they’re there."

They recently became part of their Veterans Helping Veterans program, which Nina likes because it gets her husband talking.

This program was supposed to launch 2.5 years ago but then the pandemic hit, and they were forced to shut down. They just launched the program about a year ago. Sharon Zentgraf, the Member Care Director, helped make it possible.

"I’m the wife of retired Marine so when my husband needed help it was important he be around people of like mind," she said.

They've always been helping veterans through this program now they're working to pair a veteran client with a veteran volunteer. "Because the camaraderie that they share is next to nothing. People just don't understand," said Zentgraf.

Their volunteers help keep them operational. Since they're a nonprofit they rely on grants and donations. 40 percent of their revenue comes from their upscale resale boutique which is right next door to their Pasadena office.

If you want to help by volunteering or you're a veteran in Anne Arundel County who needs help, click here