Community Foundation Boulder County today announced $6,840 total in Veterans Fund grants to two nonprofits serving local veterans: Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement (HOPE) and Qualified Listeners.
Community Foundation Boulder County today announced $6,840 total in Veterans Fund grants to two nonprofits serving local veterans: Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement (HOPE) and Qualified Listeners. Both grants are for general operating support:
- Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement: Connecting veterans experiencing homelessness with representatives of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to access benefits.
- Qualified Listeners: Meeting diverse needs of veterans and their families—from transportation, vehicle repairs, and home improvements to addressing mobility challenges, food and clothing needs, legal concerns, substance abuse, and more. Volunteers are trained listeners, offering veterans a nonjudgmental “ear.”
“The Veterans Fund was established in 2016 when Veterans Helping Veterans Now in Longmont closed its doors,” says Lisa Moreno, Senior Program Officer for the Community Foundation. “Since then, the fund has been supporting Boulder County nonprofits that serve our community’s vets. Normally the fund makes grants in November, but this year the advisory committee wanted to make grants early to better support veterans through the COVID-19 crisis.”
Specifically, the Veterans Fund – a permanent endowment of the Community Foundation – grants to programs that support the strengths and needs of local veterans and their families; builds community among veterans, including efforts by veterans to help other veterans; fosters education about veterans’ issues; and creates dialogue between veterans and the general community. Grantees are chosen by an advisory committee comprised of community members who are veterans, or who are family members of veterans; or who have direct experience providing veterans’ services.
