M2000 Corp. - Case Studies - Boosting Morale at Walter Reed

Boosting Morale at Walter Reed
All-American Picnic and Thank You at Walter Reed Army Hospital on Friday, November 20, 2008

The All-American Picnic and Thank You was a way for us to say “Thank You” to Walter Reed Army Hospital’s in-patients, out-patients, their caregivers, the hospital staff and all their families who do so much for the wounded and recuperating heroes, often without much of a thank you.

The event was a huge success and enjoyed by all who attended.

Richard Rovsek, Trustee of the Spirit of Liberty Foundation, donated a painting depicting the Iwo Jima National Monument based on the historic photo of the “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima” to Colonel Norvel Coots, Base Commander of Walter Reed Army Hospital, as part of the festivities that took place on Friday, November 14th. The painting, created by La Jolla, California artist Dottie Stanley, is now part of the Hospital’s permanent collection and will be proudly displayed at Walter Reed Army Hospital for all to see.

The All-American Picnic included participation from the following:

Sony Pictures premiered the new James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace, on the Hospital’s closed circuit television channel on a continual loop all day on Friday, November 14, 2008, the same day the film came out in theatres.
Subway’s world-famous spokesman, Jared Fogle, delighted everyone he met at Walter Reed by shaking hands and posing for photos. One young man who saw Jared as he was visiting in-patients inside the hospital exclaimed, “Jared, you’re my role model!” which seemed to be the sentiment shared by all who saw him.
Subway restaurants provided all the food, a fresh and healthy variety of Subway sandwiches and soft drinks for everyone in attendance. Additionally, Kraft, Mars, General Mills and the California Raisins provided snacks .

Many of America’s favorite cartoon characters participated including the Kool-Aid Man, Crayola’s Tip, the California Raisin, Dora the Explorer, SpongeBob SquarePants and Mr. Peanut strolled among the crowds to greet the children and guests and have their pictures taken.
Representatives from professional sports teams including, Washington Redskins football legends, Hall-of-Fame NBA stars, Hall-of-Fame MLB stars and Redskins Cheerleaders, the Washington Capitals’ mascot, Slapshot, and the famous Washington Redskins supporters, the Hogettes, all signed autographs and posed for photos.
Miss Washington D.C. from the Miss Universe pageant took photos and signed autographs.
Macy’s world famous Santa Claus made a surprise visit to Walter Reed to delight the children. Macy’s Santa announced that he ventured south to do a check up on the preparations for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York and thought he would stop by Walter Reed before returning to the North Pole.
A number of people brought antique cars, which were displayed at the event to the delight of those attending.
Additionally, many exciting entertainers including, magicians, clowns, a barber shop quartet and other talent, performed while strolling among the guests.

Volunteers at the All-American Picnic and Thank You wore T-shirts featuring bold and colorful identification of the companies that sponsored the event.

As part of the program for the event, M2000 created a coloring page, which children and adults colored and wrote personalized notes to the members of our Armed Forces. The U.S.O., one of the most respected military support organizations in the country, agreed to send the coloring pages in their U.S.O. Care Packages to members of our Armed Forces serving overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan and around the world as a reminder of how much they are cared for back home. You can click here to download a .pdf version of the coloring page.

"Thanks for the Walter Reed event. You put together a first class program and I'm certain it was fully appreciated. Keep up your outstanding efforts."
-Senator Bob Dole

“Thank you to you and all of your staff at M2000, to Santa, and to the
Spirit of Liberty Foundation. Particular thanks to Sony pictures for the
007 film which was a tremendous hit with patients, family members, and
staff alike. I look forward to working with you again in the future."
–Colonel Norvell Coots, Base Commander, Walter Reed Army Hospital