Jump for Valor is a charitable non-profit organization formed for the purpose of bettering the lives of veterans through participation in skydiving and aerial sports. Jump for Valor was established in 2019.
What is Jump for Valor?
Jump for Valor is a charitable organization that strives to offer military veterans, including combat, retired and disabled veterans, access to a community that brings them joy, a sense of freedom, and something they can participate in and enjoy with friends and family.
Skydiving provides a unique environment with many therapeutic and positive effects. The sense of accomplishment after a tandem skydive or Advance Free Fall (AFF) certification is immeasurable. Also, completing a tandem skydive or Advance Free Fall (AFF) certification can help a disabled veteran feel more in control and a sense of achievement. Facing your fears, fine-tuning your situational awareness, creating confidence and improving communication are just a few of the mental and cognitive benefits of skydiving. If I can jump out of an airplane, what else is possible?
Last but certainly not least, we provide veterans with a support system. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a major cause of suicide for veterans, with up to 22 veterans affected each day. Veterans can feel isolated and have trouble communicating their feelings, re-engaging with their community or feel a sense of purpose after their military careers.
Through our program, qualified veterans can meet people with similar backgrounds and problems and work through them together. We also strive to get loved ones involved, as tandem skydivers, ground photographers, jump observers, or whatever role they want to play.
Objectives of Organization:
To share our passion for skydiving and aerial sports with other veterans
To assist our participants in overcoming the physical limitations of their disabilities through skydiving
To promote retired and transitioning veterans’ lifelong participation in skydiving activities
To ensure the safe and professional conduct of our charitable purposes
To ensure that our participants are not exploited for commercial or political purposes
We Will Do This By:
Offering skydiving tandem experiences and official Accelerated Freefall (AFF) certification classes to qualified veterans through USPA certification programs;
Educating veterans about the opportunities for obtaining skydiving qualifications;
Facilitating the AFF qualification process of veterans by coordinating trips to USPA-certified dropzones within the United States
We believe that the veterans we serve have given themselves unselfishly and made great sacrifices for our nation. It is because of this that we seek to honor them through our service. In pursuing our philanthropic purposes, we wish to share our passion for the sport of skydiving and to enable our participants to experience the challenges, exhilaration, and sense of accomplishment and wonder that they may find in aerial environments. We encourage our participants to enjoy life, to share in the camaraderie that Jump for Valor has to offer and to develop a lifelong interest, and hopefully a passion, for skydiving. We believe that our participants can accomplish extraordinary things regardless of their mental struggles or physical disabilities; the Jump for Valor program gives them an opportunity to prove it to themselves.
Guiding Principles
Jump for Valor strives to adhere to the guiding principles below:
Provide the opportunity for struggling individuals to gain confidence and dignity through participation in sports, recreation and related educational programs
Participation in sports, recreation and physical fitness is an integral part of the rehabilitation process. Through physical and challenging activities, people affected by mental health conditions or physical disabilities gain abilities that increase self-confidence, independence and mobility. This in turn promotes an active lifestyle and social development and increases prospects for employment.
That activities be conducted, whenever feasible, in public recreation facilities and venues, to provide maximum interaction with the general public in an integrated environment.
That our participants be recruited to fill leadership, staff and volunteer positions in the organization; to provide opportunities for personal growth and employment, as well as positive role models for other struggling participants.
That, in most cases, people with mental health conditions or disabilities can achieve high levels of physical fitness; which is essential to lead an active and healthy life and achieve mental well-being.
That skydiving instruction should be conducted in a carefully planned educational setting utilizing USPA certified and trained volunteers and professionals.
That the organization should conduct its activities in a businesslike manner, with competent governance and sound financial guidelines.
Wellness
We endeavor to promote active healthy lifestyles, self-reliance and camaraderie. In creating and supporting this environment, we encourage positive attitudes and self-affirming behaviors.
Financial Responsibility and Sponsorship
In order to accomplish our goals, we rely on the charitable contributions of private citizens and funding from other related non-profit organizations. When traveling for skydiving certifications, program participants are funded by Jump for Valor and the generous donations of our sponsors and sponsor organizations. We also strive to bring certified and trainer mental health counselors to our sponsored charitable skydiving events, to offer individual and family counseling in for individuals in need. From time to time, it may be appropriate for board members, volunteers, spouses, supporters and Jump for Valor alumni to accompany program participants on skydiving trips. When attending these trips, all attendees who are not current Jump for Valor participants or instructors will be responsible for all costs and fees associated with the trip. These individuals may take advantage of any discounts offered to Jump for Valor participants if they are determined to be widely available to the general public.