2025 Volunteer Appreciation

This organization could not exist if it were not for the contributions of so many volunteers around the United States. If you are interested in volunteering with MarineParents.com and helping Recruit and Marine families through this journey, Click to Learn About Volunteering at MarineParents.com.

Letter from the Founder

This year, National Volunteer Week is April 20-26, and during this time we ask you to join us in celebrating the hard work and dedication of our volunteers here at Marine Parents.

We have 86 volunteers who worked 31,777 hours in 2024. Each of these stellar individuals completed 40+ hours of training and mentoring to begin working in our groups. Each individual's dedication to the Marine Corps benefits thousands of families worldwide.

This year as I created the collage of volunteer photos and began writing the article, I was in awe of the sheer number of volunteer hours collectively, and as individuals. Their longevity of service is not just admirable, it shows clearly their commitment to Marine and recruit family members. This is stellar work by stellar people. Congratulations to each of you, and thank you for your service.

This organization could not exist if it were not for the contributions of hundreds of parents around the United States. Our volunteers have taken that one step further and contribute endless hours answering emails, moderating the social media groups, researching information, and supporting the parents, spouses, family and friends of our United States Marines.

The volunteers at MarineParents.com are the heartbeat of the organization. They are our strength and our backbone. They are the caregivers for Marine Corps family members, giving time, attention, answers, patience, and devotion to the members and the mission. Their work is unwavering, and the giving of their time appears endless.

As the founder of MarineParents.com, I have worked with amazing volunteers through the years, numbering several thousand in our 22+ years of service as MarineParents.com. Each year, I am in awe of the statistics, hours, and work—and the kind of people volunteering for MarineParents.com.

Thank you to each of our volunteers for giving your heart to our Marine Corps family members. Thank you for giving family members a place to connect and share®. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all you do.

God Bless and Semper Fi!

Tracy Della Vecchia
Founder and Executive Director

Recognizing our Volunteers

All of our volunteers are incredibly committed to the mission and supporting Marine families. I want to take a moment to recognize individual accomplishments.

Volunteers with over 10,000 hours of service

Joyce Willcox (since March 2019) - 11,889 hours
Teresa Meadows (since April 2018) - 10,442 hours

Volunteers with over 5000-6000+ hours of service

Dana Powell - 6384
Christen Weller - 6355
Lori Ballard - 6191
Stacie Theis - 6047
Diana Wolfe - 5987

Volunteers with 8+ years of service

Valerie Campbell
Diana Wolfe

Volunteers with 7+ years of service

Stacie Theis
Jenn Landreth
Stephanie Bowling

Volunteers with 6+ years of service

Jennifer Ackerbauer
Candi Busekros
Teresa Meadows
Dana Powell
Joyce Willcox
Carolyn Williams

Volunteers with 5+ years of service

Lori Ballard
Yvette Garcia
Cheryl Griffin
Ammie Hennigan
Sherri Trinler
Marlee VesTal

Volunteers with 4+ years of service

Kelly Lycka
Julie Menefee
Theresa Nicolosi
Sheryl Peavey
Sharon Suchocki

Volunteers with 3+ years of service

Shilo Dantzer
Brenda Diaz
Yara Gutierrez
Ilene Jauquet
Mary Korte
Yvonne Mercado
Catalina Rodriguez
Erendira Saenz
Crystal Stanfield
Christen Weller

Volunteers with 2+ years of service

Laurie Eisenhart
Jennifer Hicks
Tabitha Wagner
Kate Mount
Robin Scott
Valerie Nelson
Emily Joran
Lettie Marcum
John Patterson
Jennifer Sullivan
James Engels

About National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week was established in 1974 by President Richard Nixon. This was done as a way to celebrate the hard work and dedication of volunteers. Each President since then has issued a proclamation during National Volunteer Week, and this has also been the case for many mayors and governors across the country. Since 1974, National Volunteer Week has not only been a celebration of the dedication of so many volunteers, but also a nationwide effort to encourage people to volunteer in their own communities.