Veterans receive warm clothing and support at local event

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Local volunteers gathered at Second First Church in Rockford to ensure area veterans have warm clothing for the winter during the annual “Top of Illinois Veterans Stand Down” event.

Veterans attending the event received free cold weather gear, personal hygiene packs, clothes, and lunch. The event, held on the last Friday of October each year, aims to prepare veterans for the harsh Stateline winter.

“To see the smile on their face when they leave, when they got warm clothes, warm jacket, new shoes, food,” said Ron Sodko, president of Top of Illinois Veteran Stand Down, Inc. “We give each veteran, on their way out we give them a boxed lunch. It’s just a nice, gratifying feeling when we see them leaving knowing they’re gonna be warm and have some food to eat.”

The event is not only about providing physical necessities but also about ensuring that those who served are taken care of, according to organizers.

Volunteers from the Daughters of the American Revolution chapters in Rockford, Belvidere, and Aurora assisted in guiding veterans through the event.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WTVO. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WTVO staff before being published.