Westchester based charity benefits children of fallen Marines
TUCKAHOE, Westchester County (WABC) -- Marines helping Marines. That's the simple mission of a Tuckahoe-based charity that benefits the children of U.S. Marines killed in the line of duty.
Since its founding in 1995, the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation has awarded over $78 million to more than 4,100 recipients.
Recently, MC-LEF assisted the family of a fallen FDNY firefighter killed while deployed as a Marine. Staff Sergeant Christopher Slutman, 43, was killed April 8 in a roadside bomb attack near Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan.
Slutman's three daughters received $35,000 each towards the cost of their education. "It makes sure the girls have no limits," says Slutman's widow Shannon. "They can go to college, they can go to grad school, they can be doctors - it gives them options. They've already gone through enough, they need to be able to do whatever they can in their lives."
MC-LEF also provides support to the children of federal law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.
Certain medical expenses that are not covered by military insurance or federal benefits are covered by the foundation.
"I truly wish we didn't have to do as much as we do," says MC-LEF Co-President Edmond Boran. "I wish we didn't have a need for it. But we do have a need for it."
Channel 7 is proud to be the home for the New York City Veterans Day Parade. Watch it live Monday at noon.
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