The mission of Wounded Warrior Project is to honor and empower wounded warriors. Our purpose is: to raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women; to help severely injured service members aid and assist each other; and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of severely injured service members.
The mission of Wounded Warrior Project is to honor and empower wounded warriors. Our purpose is: to raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women; to help severely injured service members aid and assist each other; and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of severely injured service members.
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Charting Impact
What is your organization aiming to accomplish?
The long-term strategic goal of Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) is to foster the most successful, well-adjusted generation of wounded service members in our nation's history. We will accomplish this vision by raising awareness and enlisting the public's aid for the needs of injured service members; helping injured servicemen and women aid and assist each other; and providing unique, direct programs and services to meet their needs.
What are your strategies for making this happen?
Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) positively impacts the lives of injured service members through a high-touch, holistic approach, reaching out to warriors at a personal level by engaging them at numerous points throughout their recovery continuum. By emphasizing our core programs - focused on Outreach and Engagement, Mental Health Support, Physical Health & Wellness, and Financial Assistance, Employment, and Education – WWP works to confront the spectrum of barriers to successful reintegration that many veterans face. As one of the fastest-growing national charities, WWP provides the largest scope of programs and services to veterans at every phase and stage of their recovery and transition.
What are your organization's capabilities for doing this?
Delivering backpacks at hospital bedsides, Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) founders learned about the complex and ever-changing needs of injured service members. As the voice for this generation's wounded veterans and their caregivers and families, Wounded Warrior Project has grown in capability to serve more than 91,000 Wounded Warriors and nearly 20,000 families through its unique programs and services. Thanks to sustaining support from the American public, WWP is able to maintain and evolve these innovative programs to address emerging care issues wounded servicemen and women will face over their lifetime, and it continues to push the envelope on the care options available to veterans. For example, WWP committed $30 million in 2014 to help 250 of our most severely injured warriors who need a lifetime of support.
How will your organization know if you are making progress?
Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) continues to receive feedback from the warrior community to shape and guide the direction of the organization and the programs it offers. The 2015 Annual Alumni Survey included data based on responses from nearly 23,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. The data demonstrates WWP programs initiated based upon results from previous WWP Alumni surveys are making an impact. One in three respondents said they did not feel comfortable with the existing mental health resources available through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or Department of Defense (DoD). This finding underscores the need for programs such as the Warrior Care Network, a $100 million commitment to battle the invisible wounds of war by filling gaps in government care and reaching those who might otherwise go untreated. Warrior Care Network is a first-of-its-kind partnership between Wounded Warrior Project® and four national academic medical centers of excellence including Emory Healthcare, Massachusetts General Hospital, Rush University Medical Center, and UCLA Health. In cooperation with the VA, this program will connect thousands of warriors with world-class care.
What have and haven't you accomplished so far?
Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) fought hard in our first ten years to ensure the promises made to our veterans were kept, and we are committed to fighting for them for a lifetime. In 2012, WWP won enactment of legislation to expand the scope of required rehabilitative care for veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI), helped lay the groundwork for enactment of strong mental health provisions, and successfully pressed the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to add peer-support services for wounded veterans to its mental health workforce. Today, Wounded Warrior Project is leading change in the veterans service arena with a grant program that exponentially expands the number of veterans and service members receiving support. We're proud of the support and lasting impact WWP has had within the injured service member community during the last decade, but our work is not done. Our commitment to veterans and their families is not for a day, week, month or year – it's a promise of a lifetime of support. As the nation embraces a new generation of veterans, WWP will be there – as long as they need us.
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This impact information is current as of August 2020, when it was provided to us by GuideStar.
At this time, Impact information published on this organization's page has no effect on its rating per our methodology.
Program names and associated costs are listed for the top programs as reported on the charity's most recently filed Form 990. The top programs displayed will include the largest three programs, or those programs covering at least 60% of the charity's total expenses, whichever comes first.
Program Name
Amount Spent
% of Program Expenses
Mental Health and Wellness
$62,679,772
31.2%
Connection
$45,820,865
22.8%
Financial Wellness
$31,485,656
15.7%
Within the last year, this charity had a CN Advisory removed. Read More
In accordance with our policy for removing CN Advisories, Charity Navigator removed the Low Concern CN Advisory for the Wounded Warrior Project on October 1, 2016 because the CN Advisory had been in place for more than six months (since January 2016) and because the organization provided public domain information, available in press releases and news reports below, addressing concerns raised in media investigations.
Charity Navigator had published a CN Advisory on the Wounded Warrior Project because we became aware of the following information in connection with this charity:
On January 26, 2016, CBS News investigated the operations of Wounded Warrior Project, in an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project accused of wasting donation money." For this reason, we have issued a Low Concern CN Advisory. For more information regarding the investigation, please see the CBS News article.
On January 27, 2016, CBS News published an article titled, "Ex-employee: Wounded Warrior Project conduct 'makes me sick'." For more information, please see the CBS News article.
On January 27, 2016, CBS News published an article titled, "Charity watchdogs question Wounded Warrior's spending on vets." For more information, please see the CBS News article.
On January 27, 2016, The New York Times published an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project Spends Lavishly on Itself, Insiders Say." For more information, please see The New York Times article.
On January 27, 2016, News4JAX published an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project suing 2 injured veterans." For more information, please see the News4JAX article.
On February 1, 2016, CBS News published an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project publicly responds to 'concerns'." For more information, please see the CBS News article.
On March 10, 2016, CBS News published an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project execs fired." For more information, please see the CBS News article.
On March 10, 2016, Wounded Warrior Project published press release titled, "Board of Directors of Wounded Warrior Project Addresses Independent Review." For more information, please see the Wounded Warrior Project press release.
On March 14, 2016, CBS This Morning published an article titled, "Wounded Warrior Project chair on recovery from spending scandal." For more information, please see the CBS This Morning article.
On March 18, 2016, The New York Times published an article titled, "Senator Wants Data on Wounded Warrior Project, a Charity Under Fire." For more information, please see The New York Times article.
On April 11, 2016, Wounded Warrior Project announced, "Wounded Warrior Project Appoints Interim Chief Operating Officer." For more information, please see the Wounded Warrior Project's website.
On May 16, 2016, News4JAX published an article titled, "Senator questions Wounded Warrior Project spending." For more information, please see the News4JAX article.
On June 16, 2016, The Chronicle of Philanthropy published an article titled, "Pentagon Official to Take Charge of Wounded Warrior Project." For more information, please see The Chronicle of Philanthropy article.
Independent - the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary (i.e., not affiliated with a National, Regional, or Geographic grouping of organizations).
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