Operation Appreciation, an event held by Operation Paying It Forward for local veterans and first responders, honored those who serve on Oct. 12 at Wells Memorial and Event Center.
OPIF invited Dr. Daniel Middlebrooks, Plant City Police Chief Duncan and Major Rick Roebuck with Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office to speak at the event. Middlebrooks summed up the atmosphere of the event by encouraging attendees to “bloom where they’re planted.” You never know what will come your way, but by fighting to grow into a vessel that pours back into the community, you can make sure you leave the world a little better than it was before you came.
“Paying it forward means I may never benefit from what I’m doing now, I may never see the fruit of the seeds I’m planting, but I do the work and I plant them anyway because down the road, someone else will benefit from what I’ve done,” Middlebrooks said.
Michelle Valdes, president of Operation Paying It Forward, said it was important for her organization to host this event because she wanted to show appreciation to and honor local veterans and first responders. She said they do so much for the community and are rarely thanked for their sacrifice and hard work, so she partnered with Wells Memorial and began putting the event together.
“We were on the ground floor when Operation Paying It Forward was started by Michelle,” Verna McKelvin, director at Wells Memorial, said. “We’ve been partnering with her since the start because we believe in her mission and in what she’s doing. First responders and military are so important to us and we wanted to make sure we express our appreciation to them by helping her get this event together.”
Joined by Rene Miller, assistant manager of Wells Memorial, McKelvin greeted every attendee that ducked under the tent and helped facilitate the festivities.
Attendees were treated to a free meal and giveaways and were invited to stroll through the assembled vendors, which highlighted a variety of resources veterans can access from groups like Homes for Heroes, Veteran’s Council, The Life Center of Suncoast and more.
As the day progressed, several first responders swung by on their lunch breaks to take part in the celebration. Catering was provided by ACI Catering and DJ John Paul kept the festivities rolling with his nonstop hits.
“Michelle does a great job,” Chief Duncan said. “She’s very passionate about paying it forward. We appreciate what they do for us. This community is successful because of those random acts of kindness that her group really makes an effort to highlight. They’re focused on encouraging that type of behavior and this is a great example of what can happen when the community comes together.”