The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation is the official 501(c)(3) charity of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States (VFW). Since 1899, the VFW has been at the vanguard of ensuring that veterans are never forgotten for their patriotic commitment to America. Thus, the VFW was the driving force behind the original G. I. Bill and the more recent Post-9/11 G. I. Bill which set, then expanded, guarantees to veterans for numerous benefits that have typically included education, housing loans and even, ultimately, the transformation of the VA itself (medical treatment and disability entitlements for veterans). The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation seeks to fill in government assistance gaps that are currently lacking or that do not exist for our service personnel, military families and America's often forgotten veterans. We know the stringent demands of military life and the costs these brave men and women have paid to keep our country free. That is why we assist them directly -- constantly striving to honor their sacrifice in every way possible. Thus, we are an organization that not only brings national awareness to the issues and problems of veterans and a voice to those who often cannot speak for themselves but an effective transparent charity that offers meaningful programs and services that address the "real" needs of veterans. Our diverse programs and services include bill-pay assistance for financially burdened veterans and military families; higher education for troops and veterans including scholarships and assistance with VA funded programs; no-cost VA medical claims representation for all those who have worn the uniform, regardless of VFW affiliation; free phone time to active duty military personnel and hospitalized veterans; morale building welcome home and send-off events for military units; and so much more! All of our endeavors are designed to bring personal dignity, compassionate understanding and equitable treatment to America's veterans.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation utilizes a variety of strategies that are invaluable in the realization of our mission and goals. As with most nonprofits, we typically do an annual "SWOT" analysis to identify our organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The data that is gleaned gives input for strategic planning, though instead of a static document, we tend to examine it as a fluid, continuous and adaptable guide that can change abruptly especially when confronted with the often dynamic "opportunity" and "threat" SWOT components. Board and staff leadership most usually have tended to downplay setting exact financial fundraising goals, especially when considering corporate relationship building. The prevailing theory has been that involving corporate sources will not only expand knowledge of our activities (i. e. corporations will publicize our programs to the general public and their workforce) but ultimately the relationship will organically lead into further opportunities. Typically, this strategy has resulted in earned income and charitable contributions over time or in certain instances the establishment of cause marketing campaigns. We believe that any talk of strategy naturally entails the creation of a successful operational plan which must be usable and goal-driven, with achievable objectives. Long and short term strategic goals are fused together so that they can be examined in unison as we advance forward.

As mentioned previously, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation is the official fundraising arm of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. Because of this unique relationship, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation can tap into the extensive administrative structure of the VFW itself. The VFW and its Auxiliary total over 1. 6 million members with over 6,000 Posts in almost every American community. Thus, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation has an expansive geographic footprint that sets us apart from most other U. S. veteran service organizations. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation employs an innovative and sophisticated regimen of social media techniques targeted specifically to reach veterans and their family members so as to raise awareness of the services we offer. Thus, information about our programs can be quickly and easily disseminated not only to veterans within VFW ranks but through our many diverse outreach channels. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation has also cultivated numerous strategic relationships with a wide range of entities including other non-profits (both veteran and non-veteran), corporations, media, etc. Through this cooperative resource sharing, the availability of our programs and services is further publicized and ultimately its impact is magnified. Furthermore, the VFW operates a network of national veterans service (NVS) officers who provide direct assistance to help veterans with their often difficult VA entitlement claims for injuries incurred while in the military. This counseling is available to all veterans regardless of VFW affiliation and is provided at no cost. Each year, VFW NVS representatives meet with thousands of veterans in this capacity. Veterans are identified who need additional assistance outside the realm of what the VA system might be able to provide. These individuals are then referred back to applicable Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation programs and services.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation is currently developing a detailed performance questionnaire that will enhance our ability to identify if goals are being realized. The form will have approximately 60 questions under the following broad categories: Leadership, Strategy, Customers (Those We Serve), Operations, Results and Workforce, It will be distributed to Board members, key donors, internal Foundation staff and certain individual recipients of our program services. Respondents will be asked to choose the box that best matches how they feel (strongly disagree, disagree, undecided, agree, strongly agree). Of course, we constantly use a variety of usual metrics to track progress under several key categories. For example, with Revenue, we look at whether it is increasing or declining, the percent change from the year before, change in average gift size, etc. When we examine the category of Donors, we examine the number of new donors versus the loss of existing donors, retention rate, the ability to increase donation amounts from current donors, the average gift size and so forth. With this in mind, we do not want to be totally tied to statistical or financial analysis to guide our perception of progress success. This comes into play when evaluating whether or not we have enhanced our Mission; namely, have we improved the lives of those we seek to serve? And if so, how? So too, how is the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation Brand fairing? Is it more recognizable or less so? Does it evoke instantaneous positive feelings for the causes we champion?

The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation is extremely proud of what we have accomplished. For example, through our Unmet Needs program, we have awarded over $10. 8 million since 2004 to 9,653 military families in financial distress to help cover expenses due to rent, mortgage, utilities, vehicle repair, health and food costs, etc. Since January 2014, our VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero Scholarship program has given $5. 7 million to 1,287 veterans and service members for continuing education scholarships and trade school tuition. We have provided funding for VFW NVS officers who have helped veterans recoup a staggering $8. 3 billion in disability compensation and pension benefits--which includes $1. 4 billion in new benefits paid to veterans just in fiscal year 2018! Additionally, since 2005, the VFW Foundation has raised funding to host thousands of morale-boosting welcome home or send off events for military units through which 2. 3 million+ service members and their family members have experienced the assurance that America truly cares about their patriotic dedication to defending our country. Proceeding forward, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation seeks to continue our current successful programs and to take them to even higher levels of impactful difference. Moreover, we are constantly assessing the needs of service personnel, veterans and their families to see how our outreach can be further modified or improved. With the anticipated drawdown of U. S. troops in combat locations such as Afghanistan, we surmise that other programs and services will become relevant. This might include start-up programs geared toward transitioning veterans back into American society with an emphasis on job training, employment, homelessness, addiction recidivism abatement and so forth. Since 2018 one crucial area that the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation has become actively involved in is "food insecurity. " The term can be defined as the lack of access to enough nutritionally adequate foods to live an active, healthy life. Research shows 1 in 4 veterans nationwide seeks aid from food pantries and other charitable programs across the country. To counter this problem, the VFW Foundation has collaborated with Feeding America affiliates, state and local VFW organizations and national corporate partners to conduct food drives designed to raise awareness of food insecurity. We have even partnered with the VA Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi to facilitate the opening of an innovative food pantry on-site. At last year's VFW National Convention in Kansas City, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation coordinated the donation of food that equated to 50,000 meals. For our 2019 National Convention in Orlando, Florida (July 20-24), we are hopeful to secure enough food for 100,000 meals!