Tag: Veterans and Military Families

Goodwill employee holds supportive sign for troops.This year, employees at Goodwill Industries of Greater Nebraska (Grand Island) are sending gifts to 25 U.S. Marines stationed in Afghanistan. A few years ago, Goodwill employees opted to forgo the office gift exchange in favor of providing gifts for others in need. Since then, more and more Goodwill employees and program participants are getting involved. This year’s decision to send gifts to Marines has become one of the Grand Island Goodwill’s biggest efforts yet to help people outside of the local community.

READ MORE from Greater Nebraska Goodwill Sends Holiday Gifts to Marines in Afghanistan

Today, Thanksgiving Day, most of us will take a brief moment to pause to reflect upon and to be thankful for important things like freedom, food security, places to call home and jobs. The harsh reality is that many people in the U.S. lack these basic needs today.

READ MORE from Looking to Help People This Thanksgiving? Be an Advocate for Change!

Sean from Houston asks, “I separated from the military three months ago, and am searching for my first civilian job. I experience PTSD from my time in Afghanistan, and it could impact my work occasionally. How should I bring this up with an employer? I want to be honest, but don’t want to risk not getting hired.”

READ MORE from For Vets with PTSD, Finding the Right Job is Key

Latonya Thomas separated from the military at the time the economy was melting down, making it hard to find civilian employment. She had lost many of her assets and felt her life had plateaued when she was referred to Goodwill. She's now exploring new careers and working with staff to meet her educational and career goals and is optimistic about her future.

READ MORE from My Story: Latonya Thomas

Wall Street Mission Goodwill Industries (Sioux City, IA) recently celebrated the launch of its Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program aimed at finding employment for homeless veterans in Sioux Falls, SD. The Sioux City Goodwill plans to enroll 55 homeless veterans in the program. When many of these veterans return home from active duty, they become chronically homeless, living out of cars, outside or on friends’ couches. Of the Sioux Falls area’s homeless population, veterans make up 11 to 20 percent.

READ MORE from Homeless Veterans to Get Leg Up from Goodwill® in Sioux Falls, SD

With Election Day only weeks away and having just passed a temporary spending measure that averted a government shutdown from occurring at the end of this week, most members of Congress are on the campaign trail convincing voters like you to give them their vote. Goodwill faces more immediate questions about whether policymakers will come together to avoid deep automatic spending cuts scheduled for early January and how vital domestic services and programs will be impacted.

READ MORE from While Election Looms, Bipartisan Efforts Still Needed to Avoid the Fiscal Cliff

Time is ticking for Congress to act on automatic spending cuts scheduled to take effect in January 2013. These cuts threaten key programs that help people in your community find work and advance in their careers. Goodwill® is committed to protecting these critical workforce investments and urges you to contact your senators and representatives.

READ MORE from Act Now to Keep Funding for Key Workforce Programs on the Table

Campaign season is fully underway as both major political parties prepare for their respective conventions. Living in a swing state means I’m exposed to even more commercials, radio ads and newspaper editorials than those lucky enough to be able to avoid seeing such negativity -- and I’m a policy wonk who usually loves this stuff, especially when the issues are being debated. There is certainly no lack of issues critical for nonprofits and supporters like you that can be discussed.

READ MORE from Goodwill® Asks: What’s Important to You This Election Season?

Campaign season is fully underway as both major political parties prepare for their respective conventions. Living in a swing state means I’m exposed to even more commercials, radio ads and newspaper editorials than those lucky enough to be able to avoid seeing such negativity -- and I’m a policy wonk who usually loves this stuff, especially when the issues are being debated. There is certainly no lack of issues critical for nonprofits and supporters like you that can be discussed.

READ MORE from Goodwill® Asks: What's Important to You This Election Season?

Military veterans are well positioned to meet the demands of a skilled and committed workforce. Sharing veterans’ stories can be transformative for all involved; the act is both empowering for the veteran and meaningful for the viewing audience. We invite you to check out our Homefront Chats initiative, a video-based storytelling project by 15 veterans participating in Goodwill's Operation: GoodJobs program.

READ MORE from New Video Series a Continuation of Goodwill’s Commitment to Supporting Veterans