Dan Lauria

Dan Lauria has been a supporter of Feed Our Vets from the beginning of the organization’s work, as well as other Veterans’ causes and organizations. A Vietnam War Veteran, Lauria served as an officer in the US Marine Corps in the early 1970s, at the same point in his life that Jack Arnold, his character in The Wonder Years did during the Korean War.

He has appeared as a guest star in over seventy television episodic programs and more than twenty Movie Of The Week productions. He has a score of film credits which include, Stakeout, Another Stakeout, both with Richard Dreyfuss and Emilio Estaves and the commercial blockbuster, Independence Day and most recently; the Frank Miller production of Will Esiner’s; The Spirit.Dan was also in the cult comedy: Alien Trespass. Dan is also a very familiar face to the off-off, off and regional theatre scene having performed, written or directed over 50 professional stage productions.

Dan is most recognized as the Dad on the highly acclaimed, Emmy winning, ABC television show, The Wonder Years.

Joe Mantegna

A longtime supporter of Veterans’ causes, Joe Mantegna has received critical acclaim for his award-winning and highly praised performances on the stage and in numerous film and television productions. He was awarded the Tony and Joseph Jefferson Awards for his role in David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross. His long-standing association with Mamet includes the premieres of A Life in the Theatre, The Disappearance of the Jews and Speed The Plow on Broadway. Mantegna has also directed a highly lauded production of Mamet’s Lakeboat, which enjoyed a successful theatrical run in Los Angeles and he later directed the film version starring Peter Falk, Robert Forester, Andy Garcia, Charles Durning, Denis Leary and George Wendt.

In the world of film, he has starred in over 90 films. Among them The Godfather III, Alice, Celebrity, Liberty Heights, and Bugsy. He starred in the critically acclaimed Mamet films House of Games, Homicide, and Things Change, for which he received the Best Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival In recent years Joe has stared in the critically acclaimed CBS series’ First Monday, Joan of Arcadia and currently stars as David Rossi in Criminal Minds. For the last 20 years, he has been the voice of Fat Tony on the Fox series The Simpsons. In April 2011 Joe will be receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Victor Bumbalo

Victor Bumbalo’s plays have been produced worldwide. He is the recipient of an Ingram Merrill Award for playwriting. Many of his plays are published by Broadway Play Publishing, including Niagara Falls, Adam And The Experts, What Are Tuesdays Like?, Tell, and Questa. Show is included in The Best American Short Plays, published by Applause Books. Bumbalo has written for several popular television series: NYPD Blue, American Gothic, Relativity, and HBO’s Spawn. His short film, Two Boys, has recently appeared in several major film festivals, including the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival and the Beverly Hills Shorts Film Festival where it won the Jury Award for Best Drama.

First Sergeant Stephen M. Amaral
U.S. Army Field Artillery

First Sergeant Stephen M. Amaral was born in Newport, RI, and entered active service August 16, 1993.

Prior to arriving at Fort Carson, CO, First Sergeant Amaral served as a First Sergeant at Fort Drum, NY.Prior to arriving at Fort Carson, CO, First Sergeant Amaral served as a First Sergeant at Fort Drum, NY.

First Sergeant Amaral has held many leadership positions, including Master Gunner, platoon sergeant, gunnery sergeant, howitzer section chief, ammunition team chief, gunner, and cannoneer.

Previous duty assignments include the 10th Mountain Division, US Army Training and Doctrine Command, 82nd Airborne Division, US Army Garrison, Fort Carson, CO, the 3rd Infantry Division, and the 25th Infantry Division. First Sergeant Amaral has also served in numerous overseas deployments, namely in Kuwait and Iraq.

First Sergeant Amaral has earned many awards and distinctions throughout his career. These include the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, and Combat Action Badge.

First Sergeant Amaral’s military education includes the Senior Leader Course, Air Assault School, Airborne School, Drill Sergeant School, and the Mountain Leaders’ Advanced Rifle Marksmanship Course.

He is married to his beautiful wife Liane, from Lyons Falls, NY.

Dr. Liane R. Amaral

Dr. Liane Amaral was born in Auburn, N.Y. and grew up outside Albany, N.Y. She attended the Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine and graduated with a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine in 1996. After practicing small animal veterinary medicine in Virginia and New York, she settled in the small northern New York town of Lyons Falls where she built a cabin on the river and met her husband, First Sergeant Stephen Amaral.

While practicing in the Buffalo, N.Y. area, Dr. Amaral served as a board member and President of the Board of Directors for the Pet Emergency Fund, a charitable organization assisting pet owners in need with emergency veterinary care. She also volunteered with Feral Cat Focus, a not-for-profit organization to aid in sterilization and health care of feral cats. Dr. Amaral was also an advisory board member for the Animal Alliance of Western New York where she assisted in starting Operation Pets, a not-for-profit high volume, low cost spay and neuter clinic for pets of low income families, rescue and humane organizations and feral cats with dedicated care givers.

Dr. Amaral is an avid whitewater kayaker and certified instructor. She volunteers her time every week with Team River Runners, helping wounded Soldiers heal through kayaking. She lives with her wonderful husband, First Sergeant Amaral, in Colorado.