ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., April 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- World Champion Women's Boxer Holly Holm will be throwing kisses instead of punches at sick and disabled veterans at the Albuquerque VA Medical Center when she visits them on Friday, April 13, to help honor the brave service of our nation's veterans. Holm will sign photographs, distribute boxing memorabilia and hand out special DAV autograph cards to the patients as part of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Celebrity Entertainment Program.
Holm is scheduled to begin her hospital visit at 10:00 a.m. to help brighten the day for sick and disabled veterans. The visit by Holm to the Albuquerque VA Medical Center, 1501 San Pedro St., SE., will be her first as part of the DAV Celebrity Entertainment Program. She joins Major League Baseball players, NASCAR drivers, Major League Baseball Umpires Larry Barnett and Jerry Layne and others participating in the program. These celebrities generously donate their time to remember the men and women who sacrificed greatly in defense of liberty.

Holm is the undisputed world's women welterweight champion. She currently holds four major belts (WBC, WBA, WIBA and IFBA) and two minor ones (GBU and IBA). These include the WBC Women's Welterweight World Title,
IBA Women's Light Welterweight World Title, WBA Women's Welterweight World Title, and IFBA Junior Middleweight World Title. Holm began her boxing career as a kickboxer. She was taking an aerobics class when she noticed
the kickboxing class and decided to try it because it looked fun. Holm dedicates most of her time to training and working out.

"We are very pleased to have Holly join our Celebrity Entertainment Program," said DAV National Commander Bradley S. Barton. "I know that this visit to the Albuquerque VA Medical Center will bring great joy to the men and women veterans being treated there. Many of these wonderful veterans rarely get visitors. They have sacrificed a great deal to defend our nation's liberty, and they should get the respect and care they deserve."

"This is an important time for our nation and our veterans," said Holm.  "All of these veterans have risked their lives for our country and this is just one token of my respect and admiration. It's such an inspirational experience for me to be able to spend time with them."

The 1.3 million-member Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit organization founded in 1920 and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932, represents this nation's disabled veterans. It is dedicated to a single purpose: building better lives for our nation's disabled veterans and their families. For more information, visit the organization's Web site
http://www.dav.org.  Contact: Edward E. Hartman, DAV, (202) 554-3501 Sonja Brown, Albuquerque VA Medical Center, (505) 271-6511, Ext. 49089