Veterans

The Trust envisions a society where veterans can transition into communities with resources available to live with dignity and achieve their full potential.

Overview

America’s more than 20 years of wars after 9/11 cast a critical lens on how the country supports those who serve in uniform, most notably, how they are taken care of after leaving service. Due to the demands of military life and traumas encountered during service, many veterans and their families are not well-prepared to transition to civilian life. Despite this, most veterans successfully transition out of service, however a significant number struggle after leaving the military due to factors that include how veterans access benefits and the availability of resources in disparate American communities. The influx of millions of veterans after two decades of wars stressed both the public and private veteran services sectors, calling increased attention to the capacity of these sectors to serve the most vulnerable veterans of previous wars alongside a new generation of veterans living with service-related wounds, illnesses, and injuries.

With its grantmaking in the Veterans program area, the Trust aims to promote inclusion and wellness for veterans, and by extension, their families. The Trust’s grantmaking will focus on those veterans who struggle most to transition back into civilian life and the Trust will utilize an equity and justice-focused lens to address the gaps in resources for veterans of underserved communities.

Focus Population

The primary focus of the Veterans program area is to support the transition of non-career enlisted (E-1 - E-6), regardless of discharge status and length of service, including members of the National Guard and Reserves. The Trust's grantmaking will continue to place a special emphasis upon populations disproportionately impacted by historic injustices, including people of color, LGBTQ people, and women; and those living with mental health/ behavioral health issues related to military sexual trauma, combat, or systemic injustice including traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and moral injury.

Goals and Strategies

Access to Resources

Veterans and their families will have access to and utilize the benefits, resources, and programs that empower them to thrive in society, achieve their full potential, and become integrated into their communities.

Grantmaking strategies include supporting direct services and policy/systems change efforts that:

Promote a holistic approach to the delivery of services - such as those related to education, health, and employment - centered upon a coordinated and comprehensive benefits and resources navigation model. Support for the infrastructure and coordination of navigation models is also anticipated
Provide legal services that reduce barriers to accessing resources and benefits earned through military service, or that support efforts to address inequities, discrimination, and other challenges faced by veterans, including as they interact with the justice system
Support advocacy efforts and policymaker education that ensure veterans and their families are provided with the necessary benefits that allow them to transition successfully back into civilian life

Housing Security

Veterans and their families will have access to both affordable housing and relevant supports, thereby experiencing reduced homelessness and housing insecurity. Wraparound programs that provide culturally appropriate and trauma-informed care are deemed essential.

Grantmaking strategies include supporting direct services and policy/systems change efforts that:

Complement VA-funded housing programs by fulfilling unmet needs or increasing access to housing for all veterans, with an emphasis on disproportionately impacted populations
Support veteran homelessness prevention and programs that work to secure housing across the spectrum of housing options, including rapid rehousing that reduces the occurrence and duration of homelessness, transitional housing that also addresses specific support needs, and permanent supportive housing
Increase protective factors among currently housed veterans to prevent future homelessness through behavioral and mental health services, peer support, and collaborative community integration programs