Non-Profit of the Year helps veterans find peace outdoors

Dustin Bagwell may have left the Army in 2016, but that doesn’t mean he has stopped giving back to his country.
Bagwell, who retired as a sergeant after serving in the military since 2003, began work to start the nonprofit Purple Heart Outdoors in 2015. The nonprofit funds hunting and fishing trips for veterans, including those who are disabled.
“Through these outdoor activities, we at Purple Heart Outdoors are going to provide these warriors with hope so they can live more active and productive lives,” the organization’s website says. “We want to provide activities that will allow them something to look forward to.”
The organization was honored last week as the St. Mary Chamber of Commerce’s Non-Profit Business of the Year.
“Once you separate from the military, there’s not a whole lot of organizations and stuff that you can reach out to, so I decided to start up Purple Heart Outdoors,” Bagwell said.
During his service, Bagwell made two combat tours in Baghdad, Iraq.
On the side, he always has loved hunting and fishing.
“I realized how much the outdoors had helped me, so I wanted to pass that on to other veterans in our community,” he said.
The business is Bagwell’s way of helping a segment of the population, many of which are older veterans who “can’t live a very active lifestyle” because of disabilities.
“So we offer them these trips to get them out of the house,” he said.
According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s website, injuries from military service include gunshot wounds and shrapnel, limbs lost, brain and head injuries and loss of hearing.
Mental health also can be a factor, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, substance use and suicide.
With the help of his wife, Maggie Bagwell, board members and fundraising, Bagwell is able to take veterans on trips beyond Louisiana to such places as Florida, Alabama and Mississippi.
Bobby Boudreaux of Franklin, an Army veteran who served during Vietnam, attended one of the trips with his son Chad Simoneaux about two years ago.
They stayed on a houseboat and hunted deer in the marsh near Amelia.
“It was a fun trip,” Boudreaux said. “We had an enjoyable time. The guys that put the trip on or donated the trip were really nice to us. …
"We had a good fellowship going on with them. They were all nice.
They cooked breakfast for us and had lunch for us and just treated us well. We were well satisfied.”
To date, Bagwell estimated the nonprofit has taken 60 to 70 veterans on trips. Prior to COVID, he said their goal was to take 20 veterans per year on trips.
The pandemic has put things on hold and also hurt their fundraising as they were not able to hold their annual 5K.
They also couldn’t set up booths at the annual Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival and the BBQ Bash.
While things are on hold for now, Bagwell said the nonprofit’s work will resume once more of the population is vaccinated and they are able to safely resume operations.
Despite the adversity, Bagwell called it “a blessing” to help these veterans.
“We have great community support behind us,” he said.
Boudreaux recognized the generosity of the donors for such a trip and how much the donors appreciated former military members’ service.
“To me, it was an honor to be called and to enjoy that type of trip for veterans,” he said.
Of those Bagwell takes on trips, it’s about even among Vietnam and older veterans and those who served in newer conflicts, such as Iraq and Afghanistan.
“It’s really helpful when you kind of get the older and the newer guys together and mingling,” Bagwell said.
That interaction, Bagwell said, is good for the older veterans.
“You really see them start opening up and having a good time,” he said.
To learn more about the organization or to donate, visit www.purpleheartoutdoors.org.