Newly-organized Republican Women's Club of Columbia & Rensselaer Counties held its first fundraiser in support of the Capital District Patriot Flight, which typically includes 100 veterans that fly from Albany to Washington, D.C., for a day trip.

We are blessed to have Marine Corps Veteran Melissa Heusdens in our club and are honored she spends her time with us!

Our first event, the Columbia & Rensselaer County Soup-er Bowl was held on March 7 and was a "soup-er" success for Veterans, specifically the Capital District Patriot Flight. We held a 50/50 for them, and the winner donated the winnings back to the Patriot Flight. The bar at Chandler-Young Veterans Association where the event was held matched bar purchases and donated to the Patriot Flight, too.

Veterans participated in our event and offered to work the sign-in table. We had more than 20 crockpots with chili, soups and stews. Our members also donated cups, spoons, sides and toppings. We had generous donations from businesses throughout our two counties.

In addition to supporting a wonderful cause, we made a nice profit for our future group initiatives.