A New Battlefield: Female Veteran Homelessness
After six years as an active duty U.S. Army Officer, and a total of ten years in service to the country, I transitioned into the Individual Ready Reserves (IRR) and became interested in the role of female Veterans in society. While researching female warriors and their stories of triumph, I also found alarming stories and statistics of female Veteran homlelessness:
In a 2016 report, the VA-funded National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans said the number of women identified by the program as homeless, or who accessed VA programs to end homelessness tripled to 36,443 in a five-year period ending in 2015. That figure, according to the center, is projected to rise by about 9 percent to nearly 40,000 by 2025 (Military.com).
The reality is from 2016 to 2017, the number of homeless female Veterans increased by 7 percent, compared with 1 percent for their male counterparts (Military.com).
Women comprise the fastest-growing segment of the homeless Veteran population. In its 2017 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimated that just over 40,000 veterans were homeless on a single night in January of that year. Of those, about 9 percent were women, out of a population of more than 2 million female Veterans. From 2016 to 2017, the number of homeless female Vets increased by 7 percent, compared with 1 percent for their male counterparts. (VA.gov)
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On a single night in January 2018:
- 37,878 Veterans were experiencing homelessness.
- Veterans make up approximately 9 percent of all homeless adults
- Most homeless veterans were without children; only 2 percent were homeless as part of a family.
- 90.8 percent were men, while 8.5 percent (3,571 veterans) were women. (endhomelessness.org)
The rate of female Veteran homelessness is increasing. As such, this personal fundraising campaign will fund housing for homeless women Veterans and their children.
"Final Salute Inc. was founded in 2010 by a woman Veteran and cancer survivor who became aware of the large number of homeless women Veterans in the United States. She realized a need for an organization that was designed to meet and understand the unique needs of homeless women Veterans and their children. There are no longer front lines in war, however, female Veterans feel they are put at the end of line when seeking housing and other supportive services. Over 2,000,000 women have served with honor since the Revolutionary War. They have fulfilled thier obligations to their country; we now need to support them during their time of need. With the help of the American people, foundation and corporate supporters, we know our mission is achievable. Why are we doing this? Because it’s the right thing to do"
For more information on this campaign, please visit the link below or by clicking the Final Salute Icon on the right hand side of this campaign.
http://www.finalsaluteinc.org/
Crowdfunding for a non-profit, tax-deductible 501c3 nonprofit means that as the organizer of the campaign, you should have no tax liability. This also means that you can only claim donations which you personally made and received a donation receipt for, and not the combined donations for your entire campaign.
For more detailed information about how taxes apply to your personal situation, we recommend consulting with a tax professional, as everyone's finances are so unique.
