Last night a unique and coordinated effort to help both Veterans and victims of Hurricane Michael kicked-off a statewide tour in Gainesville, Florida.

The Love & Hugs Collide Tour 2019 is the collaboration of two friends who have reconnected after 35 years when they discovered that their separate journeys have converged on the same path. Vanessa White, Founder of the ‘Hugging Army’, and Maria Malec, Wellness Strategist and Patient Advocate, have embarked on a mission to unite hearts and minds by spreading goodness at the highest level. The Hugging Army started in Gainesville and will travel to Veteran centers across the state spreading a message of love through the powerful effect of “our basic human need for touch through ‘the hug’.

“The key to a vital life is found through helping one another to fulfill our basic human needs… like human touch,” said Malec. “Hug someone today…”

Next up on the Hugging Army’s march is Port St. Joe tonight, March, 16, 2019; followed by Lakeland, Port Richey, Tampa, and Clearwater the following days respectively.

The Love & Hugs Collide Tour has also partnered with the Veterans for Cannabis Foundation (VFCF) to spread the message of the healing capabilities of medical marijuana. Currently as many as 50 Veterans per day take their own lives through suicide or accidental opioid overdose.

The VFCF’s Vision is, “a world where the suffering of those who serve our country can be mitigated by treatment that does not further damage their bodies, minds and lives, or cause the death of more than 50 Veterans a day from suicide and accidental overdose.”

They aim to accomplish this mission to reduce the number of deaths from suicide and prescription overdose by providing Veterans with education and access to medical cannabis.

The founder and visionary behind Veterans for Cannabis is Air Force Veteran Joshua Littrell. He is currently working in Georgia trying to promote pro-cannabis legislation, similar to what they have done here in Florida. His wife is currently stationed in Georgia on active duty for the Air Force.

Active campaigns of the VFCF include: actively engaging and advocating for medical cannabis legislation at the State and Federal level by meeting with lawmakers, performing “pill casket demonstrations” (where members of the VFCF fill caskets with prescription pill bottles demonstrating in a shocking visual the number of people affected every day by opioid dependency and overdose), conducting Quarterly Education Seminars, and currently at work on ‘Operation CannHeal’ throughout the tour.

Operation CannHeal attempts to restore quality and purpose to the lives of Veterans by awarding medical cannabis recommendations and MMU ID cards monthly, at no-cost.

A ‘CannHeal Award’ includes: a Medical Cannabis Recommendation, Florida MMU Registry ID Card, and access to locations where experts and educators speak out on legislation and address patient questions.

Joshua Linney, Army Veteran and Wellness Advocate, is another one of the pivotal players responsible for moving Veterans for Cannabis forward and fighting for patient rights across the state of Florida.

It’s thanks to these Canna-Warriors and others like them that we have been able to make the enormous strides in Florida in favor of the patient. This is only the beginning as Linney, Malec, and White have a litany of efforts taking place over the course of 2019 and beyond.

In a world that often resorts to divisiveness and conflict, it’s incredibly important that we remember, only together will we achieve greatness. The Love & Hugs Tour and the Veterans for Cannabis Foundation aim to prove that by coming together, and embracing each other, even the most difficult obstacles can be overcome.

If you are a Veteran or curious patient in any of these cities or surrounding areas PLEASE join us in our open discussions and see if medical cannabis is right for you.

CannaChronicle will also be covering the end of tour party in Tampa, FL, LIVE, we look forward to seeing as many of you out there as possible! You might even be interviewed and appear in our LIVE STREAM! Reach out to us with any questions you may have.

The FREE end of tour party will be Tuesday, March 19, 2019 from 7-10pm at Skippers Smokehouse, located at 910 Skipper Rd, Tampa, FL 33613

See you there CannaFam