Being a non-profit, we’re in the business of making a difference. That’s something we are always trying to accomplish with every aspect of what we do, whether it’s sending care packages to troops overseas, creating stronger bonds between our veterans and their four legged companions or making an impact in the lives of surviving families of our nation’s fallen heroes (also known as Gold Star Families.) We are always striving to do meaningful deeds for our community, and try to find companies that do the same.

            It’s not always easy to accomplish our mission of pairing veterans with Gold Star Families on our own. Making these adventures exciting and memorable takes a lot of hard work and a lot of time to prepare. We were lucky enough to be introduced to one of the most incredible companies that is no stranger to serving the community: Soapy Joe’s Car Wash. Soapy Joe’s is a family owned and operated business that is located through out all of Southern California. With 11 different locations around the county, they have been responsible for maintaining the shine all over San Diego. Soapy Joe’s has shown their amazing appreciation and support not only for our very large veteran community, but all service members throughout their 13 years of business.

            For over 13 years, they have been giving away free car washes to all military members and their families for Veterans Day to honor those who have served our great nation. Just recently, they have also started “Soapy Joe’s Salutes” which is a video series that showcases local veterans who are trying to make a difference in their community. Their generosity doesn’t stop there. They have held countless events from beach clean ups, to races benefiting breast cancer research, environmental sustainability, supporting education and athletics for our local students and much, much more.

            We were honored to have Soapy Joe’s as the Title Sponsor for out latest Valor Adventures on June 16th, 2018--a day that paired veteran mentors with children of our nation’s fallen heroes for a competitive day of field games. With their contributions and involvement, we were able to create our biggest impact yet. Their enthusiastic employees joined us to help run some of our field stations, and made this event lively with their natural upbeat attitudes. With the support of dozens of volunteers, we shared a day of fellowship and guidance with our veteran mentors, eager to meet their Gold Star kids. It was a day full of smiles, laughs and much needed fun for everyone. With the help of Soapy Joe’s, we also got the chance to add small detailed and personal touches to the day.

            One of the biggest honors for us at Active Valor is getting to have a more personal relationship with everyone that comes through our program. Being able to serve the Gold Star community is a huge blessing to us and we make it a point to show the families that their service and sacrifice to our country is not forgotten and that there are still people out there that are there in any time of need. We can’t express the amount of joy we get from hearing their stories of how they have been able to conquer all struggles they have faced. It is and will always be a privilege to be a part of their lives and to now call them a part of the Active Valor family.

We feel lucky to be able to work with so many companies throughout San Diego and beyond that have a heart for our community. Seeing  the way Soapy Joe's employees interacted with the children and veterans out on the field instilled an "all-in" patriotic feeling was incredibly refreshing to witness in the corporate world. Ladies in gentlemen, this company is not your average Joe's.