CUBA — Mark and Jaclyn Schmitz started The Freedom 13 non-profit organization to honor and remember their son, Lance Corporal Jared M. Schmitz, as well as the 12 other veterans who lost their lives on Aug. 26, 2021, during a suicide bombing at Abbey Gate, Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul, Afghanistan.

The project’s goal is to open a recreational camp in every state, each with 13 homes — one for a veteran property manager and 12 for visiting veterans, police officers, and their families, honoring those lost in the Kabul tragedy. Each of the 12 homes will be available for veterans, police officers and their families.

A 171-acre property was purchased in Bourbon as the site of the very first camp. The property already has two houses: the main house, where the full-time veteran will live, as well as a common space for guests of the camp, and the first of the 12 guest homes.

There will be five one-bedroom houses, four two-bedroom houses and three three-bedroom houses, all set up with a laundry and bathroom. Only the first guest house will have its own kitchen.

Guests have access to an in-ground pool, shooting range, hunting, and riding and biking trails are available for guests to use. The new chicken house was recently built to house about 100 chickens at a time to collect eggs, and to be sent off to be processed for meat. There may be an addition of goats as well. The property also has a tennis court that will be redone into a pickleball court.

This is going to be an expensive project. Land acquisition was $1,582,000, with an additional estimation of $2 to 3.5 million for all the renovations to the preexisting structures and new developments.

They have currently raised only about one-fourth of their goal for the first camp. Donations are possible through cash, checks or online donations (one-time or recurring donations) through their website, thefreedom13.org.

They are also looking for donations that can be used onsite at the camp.

“In lieu of money…others have donated items such as decking materials and landscaping ($25,000 worth from Lowe’s Corp.). Hanson Tree Service will be sending out a semi-truck load of mulch once construction is complete,” Mark Schmitz said. “We are still in need of items like a track loader, skid steer, mini excavator, three-point attachments for our John Deere tractor 50-foot grain silo topper.”

They are also looking for side-by-sides, eight lifted golf carts, four ADA wheelchair lifted golf carts and four all-terrain mobility chairs.

“Whether a donor is a private individual, a corporation or a legacy donor, we appreciate all the support we can get,” Schmitz said.

A majority of the funding so far comes straight from the people from a small monthly giving program that was set up, where people donate $13 a month.

Bourbon was chosen for the first camp because it is centrally located, close enough to the Schmitz’s home in Wentzville, near Route 66 and, most of all, because they “wanted to be in a community that believes in their military and police and are most certainly patriotic.”

They offer volunteering opportunities such as their once-a-month volunteer day, where people go to the camp and lend a hand with cleaning up, clearing trails, mowing/weed whacking, fixing mechanical issues, etc. Once open, they will need volunteers to help with cooking and cleaning, as well as people willing to be brand ambassadors who help spread the word about the organization, volunteers for events and are looking for an experienced grant writer.

For those who stay at the camp, they want guests to “walk away with new forged friendships with other men and women who have walked in the same footsteps, shared the same experiences,” Schmitz said. “We want them to leave refreshed, renewed and, hopefully, with an even more positive outlook on life than when they (arrived).”

Once the first camp is open and operational, FOX News plans to send a crew to cover the development and show it to the nation, which will hopefully lead to an increase in support.

“So in 10 years, I hope to have another handful of camps in operation in other states,” Schmitz said. “With any nonprofit, the level of ‘good’ we can provide hinges on financial backing.”

Overall, they want to reduce veteran and police suicides, help those with PTSD have a more positive life and bring in the Veteran Affairs (VA) department to help educate veterans who need it on the benefits they have earned.

“If we can turn the life around of even just one hero, then mission accomplished,” Schmitz said.

The Freedom 13 also intends to partner with outside organizations to provide services such as PTSD counseling and suicide prevention, as well as service dog placement. If they have enough donors, they would like to potentially add a larger commercial building on the camp premises to house these services with permanent staff.

As The Freedom 13 continues to build, they have had some amazing help from companies like Lowe’s, who sent many of their workers to build a back and side deck for the main house, and donated the leftover Christmas trees that weren’t sold, which will be sunk in the lake for hiding places for fish.

Most of the fields will be kept plowed down, except a few of the smaller fields, so deer have a place to bed down. They’ve got about five miles of trails that they are working on clearing and laying down rock.

There is a fairly level spot right along the road near the entrance, which is called the bone yard. The vision for that area is “to get...some tanks, cannons, a jet...something that could be put out as a static display.”

A new gazebo and dock will be added to the lake area.

“I want, ideally, to run that lake across that front field so you can see the water from (the main house),” Schmitz said.

Organizational events are held to help raise money — 100 percent of the proceeds go to building the camp.

The Freedom 13 has a few upcoming events. The Freedom 13 Gala, held from 6-11 p.m. on Feb. 27 at the Foundry Art Center, is a formal black-tie gala with music, laughter and a live auction with items such as Jared’s Devil Dog Whiskey (bottles autographed by Donald Trump and Kid Rock), luxury trips and special limited release bottles of 20-year-old 250th anniversary Marine Corps bourbon with Jared Schmitz’s image as the Marine on the side label.

For more information, visit The Freedom 13 official website.

Another event is the Freedom Ultra Backyard Marathon, starting at 8 a.m. on June 6, at The Freedom 13 site where they are building the camp. It’s an ultimate endurance challenge where runners will start every hour on the hour and run a 4.16-mile loop around the property over and through various terrains: rolling hills, dense woods, water crossings and open fields. Contestants are eliminated if they don’t finish the loop within the hour. The race will keep going until only one runner is left standing. This event is a collaborative effort by The Freedom 13 and Muddy Banks Brewing — a veteran-owned and operated craft brewery and smoked meat restaurant in Sullivan. For registration, sponsorship, or general information, visit marathon-patriotic-video.deploypad.app.