Today, the Bob Woodruff Foundation (BWF) announced an investment of $2.1 million awarded to best-in-class organizations that are providing much-needed programs and services to veterans, caregivers, and military families impacted by COVID-19. These expedited grants invest in programs that are addressing needs defined in BWF’s research paper “Veterans and COVID-19: Projecting the Economic, Social, and Mental Health Needs of America’s Veterans.”
This announcement comes on the heels of BWF’s $1.9 million investment in programs serving veterans through their Spring Grant Cycle, bringing their total 2020 investment to over $4 million so far. The foundation will be providing another wave of COVID-19 emergency support grants in the coming weeks.
“As we monitored the increasingly concerning news around COVID-19, our team did the research and determined that our veterans and their families were going to need extra help – and that help couldn’t wait. We quickly opened a special grant cycle to address these urgent needs,” said Anne Marie Dougherty, Chief Executive Officer of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “As we still have more grants in the works right now, we’re on track to provide more funding than we’ve ever provided in single year.”
As part of a two-year $6 million partnership with the Qatar Harvey Fund (QHF) to support vulnerable veterans living in Hurricane Harvey-impacted Texas, several grants represent a strategic approach to address veterans’ ongoing needs as they are exacerbated by new challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic is having an outsized effect on the communities impacted by Hurricane Harvey, slowing the recovery for thousands of veterans living in the region. With BWF-QHF funding, this portfolio of programs will help an already strained social services sector as they continue to support veterans back to their normal state before the storm, and weather a new kind of storm that has brought sickness, unemployment, uncertainty, and isolation.
Additional grants addressing physical and mental health, social connection, and employment were made possible thanks to BWF’s partnership with the National Football League (NFL). BWF-NFL funding will support a wide variety of programs including tele-mental health services, virtual exercise and socialization programming, and financial assistance for LGBTQ veterans. Employment-related grants will train veteran entrepreneurs and provide vulnerable veterans with skills, certifications, and licenses.
“We’re proudly supporting programs that are doing important work to address the deep and urgent challenges facing our veterans, but the need is truly immense,” said Dr. Margaret Harrell, Chief Program Officer of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “We received applications requesting over $35 million in unmet needs. This portfolio represents a strategic approach to addressing the needs of the military and veteran community.”
The Bob Woodruff Foundation is continuing to raise funds to support veterans and their families, both during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.
For a full and detailed list of the Bob Woodruff Foundation’s expedited grant recipients, visit here.
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About the Bob Woodruff Foundation:
The Bob Woodruff Foundation (BWF) was founded in 2006 after reporter Bob Woodruff was hit by a roadside bomb while covering the war in Iraq. Since then, the Bob Woodruff Foundation has led an enduring call to action for people to stand up for heroes and meet the emerging and long-term needs of today’s veterans. To date, BWF has invested over $70 million to Find, Fund and Shape™ programs that have empowered impacted veterans, service members, and their family members, across the nation. For more information, please visit bobwoodrufffoundation.org or follow us on Twitter at @Stand4Heroes.