A veteran services and volunteer organization deploying veterans across the United States to help underresourced communities descend to Tampa Bay this week.
On the fourth day of the weekly event called “Operation Tampa Bay Blitz,” veterans and volunteers will gather at the Sweetwater Organic Community Farm to help expand the garden, clean spaces for education, and routes along the farm.
![Mission volunteers continue walking through the sweetwater greenhouse.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 620 413"/%3E "Mission volunteers continue walking through the sweetwater greenhouse.")
Air Force veteran Keith Thomas welcomed veterans and volunteers in his yard. “We’re building connections, and veterans really need it because when they finally take off their uniforms, many of the veterans struggle to find their purpose, he said.
Every summer, the mission hosts a large community service event in another US city. Known as a massive deployment, the initiative has previously taken place in San Antonio, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, and several other cities across the country. In 2024, the event returned to San Antonio, with 1,200 volunteers helping to revitalize 10 community sites, and positively impacting 8,000 local residents.
Jonah Ken, an Ohio Army veteran struggling with depression, says volunteering on the mission is an opportunity to “get out of my heart and help people.”
“We’ve seen a lot of effort and we’ve seen you,” said Annie Hudson, Mission’s Chief Program Officer. “Major deployments will create lasting change by strengthening the neighborhood and promoting meaningful connections between veterans and local volunteers.”
The deep-rooted relationship between Tampa’s military and the veteran community is naturally suited to this event. More than 120,000 veterans call the Tampa Bay area home, and more than 12,000 active service members live at McDill Air Force Base, according to the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs.
