When Pin-Ups For Vets Founder Gina Elise created this unique nonprofit’s first calendar in 2006, she never planned or expected her efforts to grow into the organization that she operates today.
“I felt that our troops should be getting the best possible medical care and they should be recovering through the best state of the art equipment and I thought ‘What can I do to help?’” Elise recalls. “I have always been a big fan of the 1940s’ aesthetics: I love the glamour and the class of that era and I thought why not combine my love for that aesthetic and create a fundraising calendar that would in turn raise money to help the troops.”
At the time Elise was working as a hotel manager but her passion to help the men and women who served was too strong for her to walk away from what she had created. Elise began reaching out to military bloggers, she built her website, and took the many necessary steps to launch her nonprofit and began producing WWII-style pinup calendars to support hospitalized Veterans and deployed troops.
“We sold a good amount of calendars the first year and we raised and donated $5,000 to Loma Linda VA so they bought brand new rehab equipment,” Elise said. “Toward the end of the year, people began asking me when the 2008 calendar was coming out. So I did a second calendar and that year we raised and donated $15,000 to the San Diego Naval Medical Center.”
The pin-up has been an icon in the military since the 1940s when troops would paint pin-ups on the side of planes as a small reminder of why they were fighting. Since 2006, Pin-Ups for Vets We has released eight annual calendars, which include celebrities and Veterans posing as 1940s pin-ups. The calendars include volunteers who reach out to Elise, expressing their desire to contribute.
“I am definitely proud of what Pin-Ups for Vets has accomplished in the last few years,” Volunteer Cheryl Mallare said. “The most obvious milestone was reaching over 10,000 fans on our Facebook page last year. I credit this initial jump in fans to a Facebook message we sent to a Marine Vet named Max Uriarte, creator of a Marine-inspired webcomic called Terminal Lance. He has hundreds of thousands of fans on his page, which, in social media terms, is a pretty big deal.”
Mallare’s enthusiasm led to two of her friends becoming volunteers and joining the Pin-Ups for Vets effort.
“I was recruited by my hula sister, my friend who dances hula with my hula school group, Cheryl (Mallare),” Volunteer Jill Ruiz Carreon said. “She found Pin- Ups for Vets on a volunteer match website. Cheryl knew I’d be willing to dress up like a pin-up for the organization’s “Hollywood Razzle Dazzle” themed fundraiser. I’ve always wanted to do something to give back somehow and this was just a start to that.”
For Hilary Carreon, who joined after Ruiz Carreon and Mallare had volunteered at a couple of events, visiting the VA hospitals brings her special joy.
“There is a moment that is indescribable when you see veterans who have bravely served our country and immediately putting a smile to their faces by just walking into the room,” Carreon said. “One of my favorite visits to the VA Hospital was when some girls from my hula group, based in Culver City, put on a 20 minute show for the patients.”
In the eight years that Pin-Ups for Vets has been making a difference for veterans across the country, the nonprofit has donated $52,000 to VAs nationwide. The goal for Elise and her volunteers is to visit at least one VA or military hospital in every state. So far they have visited 43 VA hospitals in 27 states.
“I am really lucky that I have an amazing group of girls that are volunteering with us and a lot of them are actually female veterans,” Elise said. “The thing that is really interesting is that teamwork and leadership has alwaysbeen important to them. Giving back and being part of a cause greater than themselves was always important to them and it is important to them now, after their service.”
For the volunteers it is not difficult to see themselves involved with Pin-Ups for Vets for a while longer.
“Volunteering has always been a large part of my life. I am a hula dancer (as are Jill and Hilary Carreon), and we do numerous local community events without pay simply because we love sharing our performances, meeting new people, and being a part of something outside of our normal routines from time to time,” Mallare said. “In terms of volunteering with Vets, I had been looking for an opportunity to work with the military in some way, and Pin-Ups For Vets was the perfect organization for me to do so.”
While volunteering is a time consuming action, being a pin-up takes a lot of effort.
“When I first started to volunteer, it was new for me. I’m young, only 21,” Carreon said. “I have a new found respect for the people who do dress in that attire daily and especially for those who dressed like that back in the day. Now, I love it.”
When visiting vets at a VA or base, Elise will ask for two flights from sponsors so there are two people going from L.A. However, via Facebook she will announce the visit to the area to engage the local community to participate. During her visit to Miami during this year’s Memorial Day Weekend, she was able to get some women to volunteer and help with the visits in the area.
“I like to say that we are mak- ing volunteering glamorous,” Elise said. “I have women all over the U.S. asking how they can volunteer or give back and I feel proud that we have been able to inspire all these women who may not have been interested in volunteering.”