About.

We are a South Dakota non-profit Corporation formed on March 9, 2018 whose goal is to bring the returning veterans back into society through job training, education, or just PTSD counseling.  Dave Gates found out through personal experience when the vet feels like a member of the team, it raises his chances for survival.  Maybe the next time he looks at that 45 revolver he won't pick it up to end his life.

A New Charity

Veteran's Helping Hands Project came into being when Dave Gates started to get some of his Vietnam PTSD back after 40 of it being buried, causing Dave to rethink where he was headed in life.  VHHP started as a non-profit aimed at education, etc., but this all changed when talking to the local VFW, and Veteran's Affairs.  He found that there was an 800 lb. gorilla in the  ​room that was out of sight, pertaining to veterans being passed from one group to the next since nobody had any finances to help, or the need didn't fit the programs offered by that group.

Our Goal

Dave Gates has had a very popular outdoor TV show called Dakota Sportsmen TV which has aired on The Sportsman Channel, The Pursuit Channel, MidCo Sportsnet, streaming on The Hunt Channel, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon Fire, and OANTV.com.  What VHHP wants to do is to present our case to the national audience for support and to start a National discussion about this situation going on across the nation.  If we can stop one suicide from happening our reason for existence has been justified.  We want to remake the show to be totally about the veterans and their plight by taking veterans on hunting, and fishing trips, plus taking the whole family on retreats.

Our Team

Dave Gates
President and Founder

CELLPHONE:  605-391-7697
EMAIL:  DAVE-GATES@HOTMAIL.COM
Dave Gates is a 1969 Vietnam veteran who came back as a changed man. This service duty eventually played into the start of Veteran’s Helping Hands Project 49 years later when he made the choice to help the next generation adjust to coming home

Dave is the current President of the non-profit corporation and has been in business in Rapid City since 1977, starting with a local meat market, fish market, and smoked meats operation for 8 years. He then started Dakota Phones, Inc. in
1987 and still has that business. To go along with his service business, Dave started Rushmore Answering Service in 1994 and sold it in 2001 to concentrate on the phone business.

In the year 2013, Dave started to put together a television show named Dakota Sportsmen TV which aired on The Sportsmen Channel in 2014 and then started airing on The Pursuit Channel in 2015, where the audience grew to over 1 million viewers a quarter. One of the reasons for the success is that he wore his veteran’s status on his sleeve, and talked to vets on every show.

After filming some disabled veteran’s in 2016, something came to life and Dave started on the path of building a non-profit organization to help veteran’s emergency financial needs.

Myron Tatum
Vice President

CELLPHONE:  605-381-3968

Myron is the job foreman for a commercial Mechanical engineering company called Action Mechanical located in Rapid City, South Dakota.  Myron has had a heart for helping veterans for years and started his own 501(c)(3) in 2014, but through medical problems like heart, and back problems the non-profit lapsed.  When Dave asked it Myron wanted to be part of VHHP, Myron jumped in with both feet.  Myron is an avid hunter and fisherman, and has many rancher contacts who are willing to take vets on their properties for big game like Elk, or Buffalo.

Gerald Ames
Secretary

Gerald Ames is currently the sales manager for Northwest Pipe located in Rapid City, South Dakota.  Like Myron he is an avid hunter and fisherman, especially walleye.  Gerald was the secretary for the non-profit started by Myron and agreed to help VHHP.

Paul Rodriguez
Treasurer​​

EMAIL:  PAULR@CASEYPETERSON.COM

Paul is a CPA for a CPA and Financial Advisory company located in Rapid City, South Dakota. Paul's job as an auditoer is to audit 501(c)(3)s for the company he works for.  He is also in the Army National Guard stationed out of Pierre, South Dakota working in Rapid City as a Company Commander.  Currently, his battalion is in the process of being deployed to the Middle East in the month of July 2019.

Rich Lockwood
Director