With the Town of Fountain Hills being home to hundreds of veterans and also home to several veterans’ organizations – including the American Legion Post 58, Marine Corps League Detachment 1439, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7507, AMVETs Post 7 and the neighboring Military Order of the Purple Heart Chapter 2560 – proclamations by two mayors and the state governor has brought the following honored designations and actions to the town.

Beginning in March 2017, then Jr. Vice Commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH) Chapter 2560, Phil Yin, approached former Mayor Linda Kavanagh and Town Manager Grady Miller with a proposal to proclaim Fountain Hills a Purple Heart Town and to have installed official “Combat Wounded Parking” signs, free of charge from the Wounded Warriors Family Support organization. At least eight of these designated parking signs have been installed throughout the town, for the convenience of combat wounded veterans.

Then, in April 2017, Mayor Kavanagh and Governor Doug Ducey each proclaimed the Town of Fountain Hills and the State of Arizona, respectively, as a Purple Heart Community and State, with Purple Heart Day officially honored on Aug. 7 of each year. Official signage noting the town as an official “Purple Heart Community” is on display on Shea Blvd. near the corner of Palisades Blvd., and also near the corner of Shea Blvd. and SR 87, as well as at the north entrance into Fountain Hills from Rio Verde.

Following this, in April 2019, current Mayor Ginny Dickey proclaimed every Tuesday as Purple Heart Tuesday, “to honor and show recognition for the service and sacrifice of American servicemen and servicewomen who are Purple Heart recipients, by designating this Tuesday and all future Tuesdays in Fountain Hills as Purple Heart Tuesday.”

With this, “Purple Heart Tuesday” supporter wristbands were made available in Aug. 2018 as a visible way for the community to show gratitude and recognition. The wristbands are sponsored by Chapter 2560 of the Military Order of the Purple Heart. All donations have been used to assist local veterans in need.

In addition, on Purple Heart Day, August 7, 2019, the Fountain Hills Veterans Memorial Committee, along with MOPH Chapter 2560, hosted the inaugural Purple Heart Day Honor and Remember ceremony in the Fountain Hills Community Center. It was attended by over 250 community members and veterans, along with official state and local dignitaries and Purple Heart recipients.

Due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the Aug. 2020 ceremony was cancelled, but we will be looking forward to hosting this event once again on Aug. 7, 2021.

In Oct. 2020, the Military Order of the Purple Heart Department Commander, Charles Byers, and the MOPH Chapter 2560 Sr. Vice Commander, Phil Yin, presented the official MOPH Combat Wounded Veterans flag to the mayor and Town Council of Fountain Hills at their Oct. 20, 2020 Town Council meeting. A flag raising ceremony took place the following morning at sunrise in front of Town Hall. This brought a culmination to the successful designation and honor to our community of military organizations and its members.

The Military Order of the Purple Heart, chartered by Congress in 1932, is composed of military men and women who received the Purple Heart Medal for wounds suffered in combat. Although membership is restricted to the combat wounded, MOPH supports all veterans and their families with a myriad of nationwide programs by Chapters and National Service Officers.

For this sacrifice, they were awarded the Purple Heart Medal. This is the U.S. Military’s oldest decoration, given to those who are wounded or killed while fighting in the nation’s wars and to military members who have suffered maltreatment as a prisoner of war. It is a day set aside to honor the wounded and fallen veterans of the United States.

The mission of the MOPH is to foster an environment of goodwill and camaraderie among combat wounded veterans, promote patriotism, support necessary legislative initiatives, and most importantly, provide service to all veterans and their families.

The MOPH and its Auxiliary promote patriotism, fraternalism and the preservation of America's military history. Most importantly, through veteran service, they provide comfort and assistance to all veterans and their families, especially those requiring claims assistance with the VA, those who are homeless, and those requiring employment assistance.

Programs of the MOPH include VA volunteer service, JROTC leadership awards, scholarships, suicide awareness, Americanism, Purple Heart Trail and Cities, welfare, and numerous community service programs, all with the objective of service to veterans and their families.

To learn more, visit online at purpleheart.org.