Game 54 – Warrior Wishes Come True at the Eagles Game!

My dad has had a relatively easy week this week. We kicked off week 13 of our 2019 mission in our hometown of Chicago making wishes come true at the Bears game.

Then my dad made his way out to Cleveland to host a group of warriors at the Browns game on Sunday.

And he took an overnight bus to Philadelphia to make wishes come true at today’s Eagles game.

This is our first and only Eagles game of the 2019 season, but my dad will be back in Philly next week to make wishes come true at the Army Navy Game too!

Throughout the years we have made some unforgettable memories making Warrior Wishes come true at Eagles games. Here are some our favorites.

Personally I will never forget our first trip to Philadelphia when we ran up the “Rocky Steps” at 5am, toured Eastern State Penitentiary, and ate our first authentic Philly CheeseSteak!

My dad arrived in Philly early Monday morning. Unfortunately the weather forecast for the game was not good. They called for rain all night long…But a little rain never stopped us before and it wasn’t going to stop us today!

Today we had the honor of hosting Army Sgt Christopher Woodring, Army Sgt Ryan Long and Army Sgt Greg Hedrick at the Eagles game.

Sgt Christopher woodring served in the United States Army from 2001 to 2012. During his career, Chris deployed to Iraq three times in support of operation Iraqi freedom, where he was injured and flighted to Germany and Walter Reed.  Once stable Chris was assigned to the First Cavalry Honor Guard where he traveled and honored past and present soldiers. In 2012, Chris was medically retired due to his combat injuries and now resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and kids.

He is the Eagles “biggest fan” according to his wife. He has never been to an Eagles game and She said “this would be a dream come true for him to attend a game.” We are honored to make this dream come true!

Army Sgt Ryan Long list his right leg below the knee when he was hit by an IED in 2012 while serving in Afghanistan’s. After his injury he spent more than 3 years recovering at Walter Reed due to medical complications. Ryan is a huge Eagles fan and we were honored to show him our appreciation for his service and host him at the game!

US Army SGT Greg Hedrick was born in Philadelphia. He left for the Army just 2 months after graduating High School. Greg served two deployments in Iraq and a third in Afghanistan. On September 20, 2012, he was on a mission to recover a downed vehicle that had been struck by an improvised explosive device (IED). It was then that his own vehicle was struck by an armor piercing rocket propelled grenade. The attack left one dead and two injured. Greg lost his left leg above the knee, most of his left hand, and suffered severe PTS and TBI. He was flown to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center where he underwent countless surgeries and years of physical therapy. We have had the honor of hosting Greg in the past. He is one of the biggest Eagles fans we know. It’s always an honor to connect with him and show him our appreciation for his service!

Everyone met up at the South Philadelphia Sports Book for a quick bite to eat out of the rain before making their way over to the stadium to tailgate.

Unfortunately everyone got soaked, but fortunately, they all had fun!

As game time approached, they made their way into the stadium to watch the Giants and Eagles kickoff Monday night football!  The Woodring’s enjoyed the game from the front row behind the Eagles bench!

This game didn’t mean much for the Giants, but with the Eagles still in the hunt to make the playoffs, it was huge!  But it was the Giants who looked as if they were playing for something throughout the 1st half as they took a 17-3 lead into the break.

Thankfully for the warriors who were standing out in the pouring rain, the Eagles fought their way back into the game and forced the game into overtime.

In overtime, the Eagles marched down the field on an 8 play 75 yard touchdown drive to win the game!

Operation Warrior Wishes would like to thank Chris, Ryan and Greg for their service, sacrifices and dedication for sitting in the rain all night long! We’ve glad the Eagles won for you!

My dad will be back home for a couple days before heading back to the East coast on Thursday to make wishes come true at the Ravens game on Thursday and back in Philly next weekend for the Army Navy game. Stay tuned..