By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
The United States Military WarDogs Baseball program was created in 2018 to help support veterans who are dealing with PTSD and honor fallen military men and women. Military-affiliated players compete against collegiate league and first responder teams around the country.
Great Bend Bat Cats Manager Roger Ward said Great Bend has taken pride in honoring veterans and his team plays at Veterans Memorial Park. Scheduling the WarDogs for a game this summer seemed like a no-brainer.
"The WarDogs don't get to play much," said Ward. "A lot of these guys are active and get to come over for two weeks at a time on their tour. Some are veterans. They get to go play baseball and meet up with their families."
On July 8, the WarDogs will play the Bat Cats. Great Bend will be one of three stops for the veteran-supporting organization along with Junction City and El Dorado.
"The WarDogs come to communities and they reach out a lot to local veterans," said Ward. "It's more so about families of fallen heroes. They'll honor a local family of a fallen hero. They'll have a service dog to give away to a local veteran."
Ward said funds will be needed to cover the expense of bringing the WarDogs to Great Bend and assistance will be needed for lodging and food.