Waves of Freedom: Honoring Our Veterans on the Water

This Veterans Day, Freedom Waters Foundation and MarineMax Fort Myers are teaming up to say thank you for your service in the way we know best: by getting our local veterans out on the water.

We’re proud to announce Waves of Freedom 2026, a day of therapeutic boating for Southwest Florida veterans on Wednesday, November 11, from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM at MarineMax Fort Myers. And we need your help to make it happen.

If you own a boat or hold a captain’s license, this is your invitation to turn a few hours on the water into a therapeutic boating experience that a veteran will remember for a long time.

Why the Water Matters

Studies have shown that time spent on the water can lower cortisol levels, calm the mind, and reduce stress. For veterans carrying the weight of their service, that experience can be a powerful step toward healing.

That’s the heart of what we do. Freedom Waters Foundation brings healing, empowerment, connection, and freedom to those we serve through therapeutic boating experiences. On Veterans Day, your vessel becomes a pathway to all four:

• Healing: time on the water to breathe, relax, and reset
• Empowerment: a day designed around our participants and what they’ve earned
• Connection: camaraderie with fellow veterans and a community that shows up for them
• Freedom: the open water, which so many of them served to protect

Best of all, the experience comes at no cost to our veteran participants, thanks to generous partners, donors, sponsors, and volunteer captains.

Boat Owners and Captains: We Need You

Waves of Freedom works with volunteer boats and the people who run them. Every captain who signs up means we can provide the experience to more veterans on November 11th.

Bring your boat, your seamanship, and your hospitality, and we’ll take care of the rest. Whether you run a center console, a pontoon, or a cruiser, there’s a place for you in this event.

Volunteering your boat is one of the most direct ways to give back to the men and women who served our country. It’s a single day on your calendar, and it can mean the world to the veteran sitting next to you.

Thank You to Our Partners

A day like this takes a community. We’re grateful to MarineMax Fort Myers for partnering with us and opening their doors to host Waves of Freedom.

We also want to thank our sponsors for helping make this day possible at no cost to our veterans:

• FOX News 92.5
• Harlan Group Real Estate
• SWFL Boaters

Your support helps us continue to create therapeutic boating experiences for those who have served.

Join Us This Veterans Day

None of this happens alone, and none of it happens without you.

If you have a boat and a few hours to give on November 11th, we’d be honored to have you on the water with us. Call 239-263-2377 or sign up to volunteer your boat today.

Not a boat owner? You can still help by sharing this post with the captains and boating friends in your life. And if you’d like to support therapeutic boating experiences for veterans year-round, you can donate at freedomwatersfoundation.org.

Healing on the Water, Through Therapeutic Boating.