Our Video Link:
Our Mission:
We are a group of four students at the University of North Texas with a mission to raise funds for Disabled American Veterans (DAV) while also raising awareness of the many challenges Veterans with disabilities face. As citizens of this great nation, we owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to those who gave their lives to protect our way of life, and we also owe an ongoing debt to those who have been injured while serving. All funds will be donated directly to Disabled American Veterans to support their continued efforts in advocacy for our nation’s Veterans.
About Disabled American Veterans (DAV):
Disabled American Veterans (DAV) was formed in 1920 by World War I Veterans who sought to advocate for greater care of the many heroes who fought for our country, and advocacy for their families as well. DAV is a voice for veterans and their families during some of the most challenging times of their lives. Their journey began as World War I Veterans saw that upon returning home from war, most Veterans were left to fend for themselves for healthcare of the wounds they received and the costs they would face for the rest of their lives. In the 85 years since DAV was formed, they have assisted millions of Veterans in enrolling the VA healthcare system and also with filing claims to be properly compensated for their disabilities.
Why Disabled American Veterans need our help:
Veterans with disabilities need help. Sometimes they know what services they need, but they just cannot get them. Sometimes they don’t even know they need help or that the help they need exists, but don’t know where to go to get it. Many veterans need proper diagnosis but cannot access medical healthcare.
- Homelessness
The number of unsheltered Veterans has increased since 2016, despite a drop in the number of overall homeless Veterans since 2010. Among Veterans, Homelessness continues to be an issue that needs our attention.
- Access to Health Services
The Veteran’s Choice Act 2014 has helped get veterans the services they need and has addressed the 2014 “wait time scandal” according to Gurewich et al. (2021). Choice Act helps veterans access care if the wait at the VHA is 30 days or if they live farther than 40 miles. The five most needed services of veterans are physical therapy, cardiology, optometry, orthopedics, and/or dental services and the number of veterans who received services through community care increased from 1.3M in FY2014 to 1.8M FY2018 (Gurewich et al., 2021). As this need increases, the number of Veterans who can benefit from DAV services also increases.
- Disability Compensation and Veteran Benefits
There are 15.8 million veterans in the U.S. and those with a service-related disability were at 31% in 2022 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024). The number of veterans who use VA services as their primary healthcare provider is greater among veterans who report more trauma and tend to have served longer in the military and in combat (Pietrzak et al., 2019). “Veterans who used VA services were more likely to be black, younger, female, unmarried, and less educated and to have lower household incomes” (Pietrzak et al., 2019). Through DAV services, they have a much greater likelihood of being informed of the services available to them and receiving those services.
Our Group Members Share Their Personal Connection:
One person in our group has a stepdad who, as a World War II veteran, has been legally blind for decades and has progressively gone almost completely blind. As an elderly man living alone, he now needs help with his basic activities of daily living. There are some services available, but he needs help accessing them. Making phone calls is impossible for him when he can’t see the phone numbers to call. He needs help with everything except the most basic of his activities. Food, clothing, and shelter seem to be what people think of when they think of basics, but how does the food get there and who prepares it when it arrives? Clothing needs to be purchased and laundered. Shelter needs to have the bills paid and needs to be kept clean and in good repair.
Another person is a daughter of a permanently and totally disabled veteran. She has many childhood memories that include watching her father spend hours on the phone, mailing so many papers, struggling to drive, struggling to work, struggling to walk, and juggling more medications than she could count. It took over half her childhood for him to get what he needed, and twice as long for her to understand his lived experience. The only reason she was able to attend college after high school was because of the VA Dependent’s Educational Assistance Program. She relays that she certainly spent a lot of time in the tuition office of her school as she tried to navigate this program,and wishes she had known about the DAV as a resource at that time.
Rodney W, Jackson
I grew up among the tall pecan trees and cedar trees. I used to climb peach trees because it was a little kept secret; that the sweetest peaches were always at the top. I do not know how true that was, but it sure made a great story at recess when I was sharing my bounty with John and Laurie, two of my childhood friends. Back then we did not know color, just hunger and the gift of benevolence. Whatever we could not consume after our was briskly taken home to my grandmother who would magically turn these gems into a beautiful peach cobbler. If she was truly feeling festive, peach flavored ice cream would suddenly appear, after a lot of churning and me finishing my arithmetic.
I understood the statistics of life and reality as a black child growing up in America and knew if it was to be it was up to me. So, I excelled in school and ended up at 16 working for the US Navy Reserves in the summer via a government program for teens. Through this program I signed up for the DET Delayed Entry Program with the Navy and went off to bootcamp the summer before my Senior year in High School at the tender age of seventeen. For the first time I was truly on my own and knew my childhood was over. I successfully fully finished my tenure as a Navy Man and received my honorable discharge.
During this tenure I would lose the grandmother that raised me since I was three and the father that instilled in me confidence, honesty, and integrity. At 57 years old I am back to fulfill a promise I made to my grandmother to finish my degree. I understand the plight and that is why I am grateful to be a part of Students for Veterans. There were times in bootcamp, or in a dorm room as a reservist and college student where I was the only one in the Navy or actual military.
An organization such as Disabled American Veterans would have been a Godsend. If I can raise awareness, help with research, and just be the voice of hope and compassion that I spent nights praying for as a young man; I have fulfilled the promise I made to my Grandmother Annie. If I can provide one meal, one blanket, one bottle of water for a child who may have lost everything, it is worth anything I might sustain in the pursuit of higher education. Reach into your hearts and souls as I have to truly give donating to this worthy cause and GofundMe. Start a positive movement like we have as brave Students for Veterans. But most of all, please know that the world is better because you are here. Whether you are a Veteran or not, never give up on love never give up on life. GOD BLESS AMERICA!
Youtube Campaign Video:
References
Disabled American Veterans. Supporting Disabled Veterans: Our Mission and Impact. https://www.dav.org/about-dav/
Gurewich, D., Shwartz, M., Beilstein-Wedel, E., Davila, H., & Rosen, A. K. (2021). Did access to care improve since passage of the Veterans Choice Act? Differences between rural and urban veterans. Medical Care, 59(Suppl. 6), S270–S278. https://doi.org/10.1097/MLR.0000000000001490
Pietrzak, R. H., Southwick, S. M., Meffert, B. N., Morabito, D. M., Sawicki, D. A., Hausman, C., & Heinz, A. J. (2019). U.S. veterans who do and do not utilize Veterans Affairs health care services: Demographic, military, medical, and psychosocial characteristics. Primary Care Companion for CNS Disorders, 21(1), 26992. https://doi.org/10.4088/PCC.18m02350
U.S. Census Bureau (2024 press release):
U.S. Census Bureau. (2024, April 29). Nearly one-third of U.S. veterans report having a service-connected disability, Census Bureau reports [Press release]. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024/service-connected-disabilities.html
U.S. Department of Labor (2024 factsheet):
U.S. Department of Labor, Veterans’ Employment and Training Service. (2024). Profile of veterans: 2023 — Disabled veterans [Fact sheet]. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/VETS/files/OP1-VCMOS-Disabled-Veteran-Factsheet.pdf
Statista. Veterans Homelessness Has Been Cut in Half Since 2010. https://www.statista.com/chart/33457/number-of-homeless-veterans-in-the-us/
Organizer
Disabled American Veterans Charitable Service Trust
Beneficiary