Benefactor supports Home Front Cares, buys dinner for 1,000

Nearly 1,000 people at The Home Front Cares fifth annual military appreciation dinner Wednesday had purchased $125 tickets or sponsored full tables in support of military families.

No one suspected what was to come. A collective gasp rose from the wall-to-wall crowd in the Broadmoor International Center when board member retired Lt. Gen. Ed Anderson announced that an anonymous benefactor “has paid for dinner tonight,” allowing all ticket money to go to the needs of the families of deployed soldiers. Sometimes a car breaks down, a utility bill can’t be paid or a spouse needs a scholarship for college and the nonprofit helps out.

Wednesday’s gift from a foundation could be worth an estimated $75,000, said group co-founder Bob Carlone,  and “every dollar (saved) goes to the troops.”

The crowds were there for the troops and the Wounded Warriors, and to hear Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the United States Central Command, who applauded the community’s support of “our troopers.”