Veterans awareness gets a green light

Mikaela Boelkins, a student at R. Dan Nolan Middle School, and her friends are putting a spotlight —  rather a green light — on veterans.

After learning about “Greenlight a Vet,” a nationwide campaign to establish visible support for veterans by changing one light at a residence to green, Boelkins wanted to get involved.

Her dilemma, however, was finding a way to do it.

Lakewood Ranch’s homeowners associations, including hers in Greenbrook, generally restrict homeowners from using non-standard color lightbulbs in coach and lamppost lights.

“There’s stuff we can do to help veterans have a more smooth transition, but it is limited,” Boelkins said. “Veterans are looking for community support.”

Boelkins last month asked the Greenbrook Village Association to allow green bulbs outside so homeowners could visibly show support for military veterans. The board agreed to pilot the idea, with some restrictions.

The HOA will limit use of the lights to specified times of the year. The dates have not yet been finalized, but Mikaela expects they will be May 21 to May 30, in conjunction with Memorial Day.

“We were very impressed with the way she presented the concept and the whole idea behind it,” Greenbrook Village Association board member Steve Balazic said, noting board members did have some concerns about community aesthetics. “We agreed we would allow her to publicize this and sell the green lights to be used in Greenbrook for a one-week trial. We don’t want to end up with green lights throughout the community that never go out again. We want to make sure people understand the initiative.”

Later presentations to the Country Club/Edgewater Village Association and Summerfield/Riverwalk Association proved successful as well.

Boelkins said the Wal-Mart at 5810 Ranch Lake Blvd., has agreed to carry the green light bulbs, which cost less than $1 for a two-pack. She and teammates on her Manatee Community Problem Solvers team sat outside the store March 19 to sell bulbs and raise awareness.

It is just one part of a larger “Soldiers to Civilians” project the 12-member team is doing with a goal of helping veterans, particularly those recently returned from deployments, to feel understood and supported by the community.

The group itself is talking with veterans to learn more about their service experiences, post-traumatic stress and other issues that affect their lives when they return home. 

“It is essentially a project that evolves around a soldier transitioning to civilian life,” Boelkins said.

On March 11, the group rallied more than 40 students from across the county to mingle and play games with veterans. They’ve also attended packing parties hosted by Manasota Operation Troop Support, which packs and mails packages to service members overseas.

The team created a documentary of veterans, which has been submitted to the Manatee Film Festival.