On November 10, 2019, Joe Walsh welcomed Sheryl Crow, The Doobie Brothers, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Brad Paisley and ZZ Top for his third annual VetsAid festival at the Toyota Center in downtown Houston, TX to an audience of more than 10,000 fans, vets, active duty military and families. Thanks to our attendees, sponsors and partners, we were able to disburse $250,000 in grants to our charity partners. Joe was also beyond honored to cut the ribbon and co-host the “Red, White and You” jobs fair with Workforce Solutions at Minute Maid Park where more than 125 employers worked with vets and their families looking for meaningful employment.
With thanks to our partners at the National Association of Veteran Serving Organizations (NAVSO), VetsAid screens large veterans' charities as well as smaller groups across the United States and gives out grants respectively. It's important to Joe that VetsAid recognizes the good works being done by established national charities as well as those by local and regional groups where a little can go a long way.
In 2019, VetsAid selected and gave out grants to the following:
$25,000 GRANT RECIPIENTS:
Combined Arms - Combined Arms is a dynamic, ever-evolving collaborative impact organization that is using an innovative approach to technology and service delivery to disrupt the veteran transition experience.
Headstrong - Headstrong, founded in 2012, provides confidential, cost-free and frictionless mental health care treatment for military veterans and their families that works.
U.S. Vets Houston - Each month, U.S.VETS — Houston interacts with over 1,000 veterans and their families.
Next Op Vets - Founded in 2014, NextOp is a non-profit that helps veterans translate their exceptional military training into successful civilian careers.
Vets4Warriors - Vets4Warriors provides sustained, confidential peer support to any veteran, service member, family member, or caregiver whenever they have an issue, wherever they are in the world. We help before challenges turn into crises.
Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes - Founded in 2004 as a non-profit, non-partisan 501(c) (3) organization, the Coalition is among the nation’s leading charities whose donors provide the wounded veterans and families of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn the aid and assistance needed for their long roads to recovery.
Swords to Plowshares - Founded in 1974 by veterans, Swords to Plowshares is a community-based not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization that provides needs assessment and case management, employment and training, housing, and legal assistance to approximately 3,000 veterans in the San Francisco Bay Area each year.
Sentinels of Freedom - The mission of Sentinels of Freedom Scholarship Foundation is to assist severely wounded and injured, post-9/11 veterans in their efforts to become productive and self-sufficient members of their communities as they transition back into civilian life.
$5,000 SMALL GRANT RECIPIENTS:
Grace After Fire - The mission of Grace After Fire is to provide the means for women Veterans to gain self-knowledge and self-renewal.
Train a Dog, Save a Warrior - TADSAW INC is the leader of Service Dog Providers in the area of diversity, striving to mirror the demographics
of Our Veteran population with disabilities.
Texas Veterans Outdoors - Texas Veterans Outdoors is dedicated to be a charitable organization that provides a positive social atmosphere for Texas Veterans through educational outdoor experiences.
Smiles for Veterans - To give our Veterans in need the smile they have earned by facilitating critical dental care.
Hero’s Bridge - Hero’s Bridge is dedicated to serving elderly veterans, age 65 and older. We serve, stand by and honor our aging veterans through six distinct programs. These services are available to our heroes wherever they call home, at no expense to them or their families.
Every Third Saturday - Every Third Saturday provides the support, resources, and accountability for vets and their loved ones in the Twin Cities and surrounding areas.
Vets on Track Foundation - Vets on Track Foundation works diligently at the grass-roots level with organizations that are working to place homeless veterans and first responders into permanent housing.
Easter Seals Houston - Easter Seals Greater Houston provides a variety of needed services to individuals of all ages with all types of disabilities and their families in the greater Houston area and surrounding counties.
HeartStrides - HeartStrides’ mission is to integrate the principles of horsemanship with research based learning during interactive experiences with horses, which will improve the well-being of individuals, families, communities and, with this grant, veterans.