Veterans Day Breakfast
- Veterans Breakfast, Saturday, November 4, Keilty Hall, St. Brigid’s Church
- Sponsored by The Town Celebrations Committee in partnership with the Lexington Rotary and the Lexington/Bedford Veterans Services Office.
- Tickets may be obtained at the Lexington Community Center and Michelson’s Shoes in Lexington Center. Admission is free but a ticket is required.
- Coffee 8:30 a.m. Program starts 8:50 a.m. Breakfast served 9:00 a.m.
- Rotary Club members will serve a full breakfast catered by Neillio’s.
- Complimentary service portraits by professional photographer Dave Tabeling
- More than 20 door prizes donated by local businesses.
- For questions on the event, contact Veterans Services Director Gina Rada at grada@lexingtonma.gov or 781 698-4848.
Karen Budnick
Karen Budnick, LICSW, Senior Social Worker and Coordinator of the No Veteran Dies Alone program at the Bedford VA Hospital, will deliver the keynote address at the sixth annual Veterans’ Breakfast on Saturday, November 4, 2017 at Keilty Hall, St. Brigid’s Church, 2001 Massachusetts Avenue.
For the past eight years, Karen has served as the Social Worker at the David James Hospice Unit at the Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Administration Hospital in Bedford. This unit includes its own dedicated physician, social worker, psychologist, nursing staff, volunteers and chaplain to care for veterans at the end of their lives with dignity, respect and compassion. “There is much suffering and hardship in the world today” Karen says, “and I view my job as helping to alleviate suffering and to bring light, love, peace and harmony to those veterans who are taking their final journey.”
Many veterans arrive at the hospice unit with serious psychic and medical issues – war injuries, PTSD, addictions of all kinds – that in turn have created sadness, loss, anger and separations from their families. As veterans approach the end of life, many yearn to mend these hurts and make peace with their families (and many families want to do the same). The love and support that the Hospice Program, Karen and the volunteers provide to veterans and families helps them open their hearts to forgiveness of self and forgiveness of others, often bringing peace and understanding before the veteran embarks on the final journey.
Karen holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona and a Master of Social Work from Yeshiva University.
Veterans Day Parade & Ceremony
PARADE
Gather in parking lot behind
Police Station 9:30 a.m.
Step off 10:00 a.m.
CEREMONY
Inside Cary Hall, 11:00 a.m.
