www.myspace.com/ward57

Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) in Washington DC is the first stop for many of America's returning wounded service members from Iraq and Afghanistan.  Known as "the amputee ward", the orthopedic Ward 57 at WRAMC houses some of the most severely injured patients for weeks or even months. The painful sacrifice of losing one or more limbs is the new battle these service members and their families now fight.

Operation Ward 57 was started to have a direct way for individuals and companies to show their support and raise funds for these courageous men and women who have given so much.
The program is run through pro-football player Kerry Carter's THINK BIG FOUNDATION, 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, Tax ID: 20-196-2446, in partnership with Atmosphere Artist Management LLC.  This is a grass-roots, volunteer effort. Each person who buys a T-shirt, not only shows their support, but directly contributes to items for the Ward, patients, family members and staff.

 

 

 

July 16, 2007

For Immediate Release

 

 

THE POWER OF HARDCORE MUSIC TO HELP

AMERICA’S WOUNDED WARRIORS OF WARD 57

 

 July 18 the Strange Noize tour debuts fundraising effort for soldiers

 

Seattle, WA - Imagine you are 19 years old and missing all four of your extremities along with having half your face blown off?  Soldiers are either alive and well and coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan or are dead. WARD 57 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) in Washington DC, home of “Warrior Care” is filled with those that have been torn apart both physically and mentally. They are taking months to recover only to be discharged to substandard housing for even more recovery time, with some taking years.

 

This is the Ward of the forgotten. Even though politicians and celebrities visit them on a daily basis for a photo-op, these young men (and a few women) are bored, depressed and in pain, day after day with little contact with the outside world. Morale is at an all-time low as both Congress and the President “rushed” to “fix” the problems after the housing scandal was exposed. Meanwhile, items that would greatly improve patient care and morale on Ward 57 go unfulfilled. Politics do not move fast enough, so a small group of people based in Seattle and the staff of Ward 57 are working together to raise funds through the sale of the Ward 57 T-shirt and football jersey.

 

This grassroots effort started with a personal visit to a young amputee from Seattle who was stuck on the Ward for seven months.  He needed a morale boost to help get him through the next round of surgeries to save his surviving foot from being amputated.  The patient got a Seahawks gift pack delivered by NFL player Kerry Carter and music industry/not-for profit professional Deborah Semer (Semer’s husband works on the Ward).  Since that visit, Carter’s Think Big Foundation and Semer’s company, Atmosphere Artist Management have joined together to raise funds and buy things for the Ward. Word is spreading quickly around the country. Semer’s friend and colleague, Doug Cox, owner of the Seattle-based national street promotion company, Poster Giant encouraged the creation of a special mesh football jersey for bands to wear on tour.  Brian Richeal, owner of TeeFX in New York (and a musician) agreed to sponsor the idea.

 

Suburban Noize Records,www.suburbannoizerecords.com, a self-empowered independent music label and its artists on the Strange Noize Tour: Kottonmouth Kings, (HED) P.E. and the Subnoize Souljaz featuring Big B and The Dirtball are joining the effort to help America’s wounded warriors.

 

Their music is hardcore, their fans are hardcore and they understand the power they have to help young soldiers returning from a hardcore situation…having their bodies blown apart in the name of war. Using their power of hardcore music to reach thousands of fans they will debut the Ward 57 football jersey on stage July 18, 2007 at the Moore Theatre in Seattle, WA. A handful of lucky soldiers will get to attend various shows across the country for the 32-date tour./span>

 

Huntington Beach, California's (HED) P.E. in particular have taken the lead with the fundraising promotion pledging to wear the jerseys at each show. The group was founded in 1994 by front man Jared Gomes (a.k.a. M.C.U.D.), whose goal was to fuse the region's long-standing punk rock heritage with G-funk-inflected hip-hop, a sound he labeled "G-punk."  Eight albums and 700,000 records later, (HED) P.E. latest album, “Insomnia” hits stores July 17th and features the single “Suffa”.  The video for the single shows images of war, soldiers and purple hearts, www.myspace.com/hedpe.

 

(HED) P.E. LYRICS from "So It Be"

 

Bring the M-16's the tools of war

The blood that runs so red stains us all

Cold steel turns so hot so fast

When the young soldiers switch off safety and blast

Will they ever see the light again? I hope so

Will they ever sleep at night again? I don't know

Will their mother ever see her son again?

They need to show that shit on ABC or CNN

 

As of January 18, 2007, there were at least 500 American amputees due to the Iraq War. According to a Time magazine article, the 500th victim was a 24-year-old corporal, who lost both legs in a roadside bomb explosion on January 12, 2007. He was cared for at the military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, and then was transferred to WRAMC

 

The WARD 57 T-shirts are $20 and the Jerseys $45 (plus shipping).  All donations and purchases are tax-deductible. Proceeds (minus cost) will go directly to purchase items needed on Ward 57 such as amputee wheelchairs, medical equipment, DVD players, TVs, movies, music, washing machines and other items. To purchase the Ward 57 T-shirt and jersey go to, www.thinkbigfoundation.org/ward57.html.

 

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MEDIA/PROGRAM CONTACT:

Deborah Semer / 206.829.9822

Atmosphere Artist Management

info@operationward57.org

 

ARTIST CONTACT:

James Wright / 519.759.3009

Kerosene Media

James@kerosenemedia.com