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Tony Dulaney of Post 9 in Georgia created Mission Meals to offer free meals to veterans who may not qualify for other services. 

A conversation between two Legionnaires with a common purpose to serve their fellow veterans resulted in chef-prepared homemade meals.

Over the past four months, the Mission Meals program at American Legion Post 9 in Brunswick, Ga., has provided more than 200 free meals to veterans who may not qualify for other meal services.

“Being a veteran organization, we wanted to help veterans,” said Tony Dulaney, a former fine dining chef and second vice commander of Post 9 who created Mission Meals after speaking with Post Commander Wes Carico. “We were looking to fill a void where veterans kind of fall between the cracks, where they don't qualify for free meals but they're still in need and maybe they're in a crisis, even if a temporary crisis. But having chef prepared, three fresh meals a week, would greatly improve their quality a lot.”

Dulaney cooks 15 meals a week in the kitchen at Post 9 with help from his girlfriend, Caryn Stinson. “There’s just two of us in the kitchen,” he said. “We do all the shopping, the cooking, the cleanup. Everything.”

The meals are fresh, not frozen, and packaged in reheatable containers with the ingredients listed and instructions for heating. Each meal contains a protein, starch and vegetable; the menu changes weekly. Veterans pick up the meals at the post unless other arrangements are needed.

“The meals are what you would get in a nice restaurant,” Dulaney said. “We make everything from scratch. We’re not just buying jars of stuff and opening them up. These are chef-made meals in a commercial kitchen in our post. And that’s what those veterans are getting is that quality meal.”

Veterans have enjoyed braised beef tips with red wine brown gravy over buttered egg noodles and honey glazed baby carrots; shrimp and grits; fried chicken breast with sun dried tomato parmesan cream sauce; country fried steak with roasted garlic mashed potatoes; and honey mustard pork loin chop over roasted sweet potatoes and creamed spinach.  

“We have had great reviews from the veterans” who benefit from Mission Meals, Dulaney said. “A lot of them said they’ve never been able to eat this kind of food before. I try to bring the most upscale food that I possibly can for the budget that we work with.”

Mission Meals just passed its 90-day test pilot mark. Its success and donations, which the program operates entirely on, ensure that free, freshly made meals for veterans in need continues.

Dulaney received buy-in for Mission Meals from Carico and Post 9’s Executive Committee.

“Wes was all for this,” Dulaney said. “His whole philosophy is for 91Ӱ���ƽ��, our post, is to serve veterans. We're supposed to be helping our community, helping our veterans in the community. And that's what his philosophy is and that's what was in the conversation. So, I was like, well, this is how I can do it. I cook, I make good meals, and we have a kitchen. I can do that. And he was 100% behind it, so we put together the plan.

“And when we presented it to the rest of the executive board, everybody was behind it. So the whole post has been behind it, and supporting it, and it's been successful.”

Dulaney said he would like to see other posts replicate the program.  

“We would really like to be the impetus for posts that have the facilities and the abilities to look at this and go, ‘We could do that in our community as well.’ I don't care where you're located, there are veterans who are in need and can use a good homemade fresh meal.

“I’m a chef, I want to make great food for people. And that’s what I’m trying to do for veterans.”

To learn more about Mission Meals visit .