Charity Dinner Raises Money for Children of Injured Soldiers
The recently established Carolin Illenzeer Foundation which supports children of seriously injured or fallen Defense Forces personnel, raised 21,900 euros at a charity dinner held on April 14.
The patron of the foundation's charity dinners is President Toomas Hendrik Ilves. According to the foundation’s charter the raised money will be used to pay tuition fees and fund recreational activities, ETV reported.
"Knowing that the community cares about families of the fallen and seriously wounded and that they are not on their own, gives people who have chosen the profession of protecting the country a sense of security," said Victoria Punga, head of the foundation.
Carolin Illenzeer, whose name the foundation bears, is the daughter of 1st Sgt. Arre Illenzeer who after seeing his daughter just once after her birth, was killed in 2004 in an explosion during a patrol mission in Baghdad.
Since 1995, over 2,000 enlisted personnel and officers of the Defense Forces have been participating in foreign missions. During service abroad, five parents have been killed; those seriously injured have 31 children altogether.
Ingrid Teesalu