Hidden Heroes Fund Announces 2017 Grants

San Diego County CA— The Elizabeth Dole Foundation, through its Hidden Heroes initiative, awarded more than a half million dollars in grants to fourteen nonprofit organizations to expand existing programs or create new services to support military caregivers. The 2017 grant recipients were competitively selected from among nearly 150 applications from organizations nationally.
“When the Foundation launched Hidden Heroes in September, we renewed our commitment to do all we can to improve the lives of military caregivers, those spouses, mothers, dads, children, siblings, and friends who are caring for America’s wounded warriors,” said Senator Elizabeth Dole. “As part of this multifaceted initiative, we established the Hidden Heroes Fund to award grants to nonprofit organizations that are making a real difference in the lives of America’s military and veteran caregivers.”
The two San Diego area organizations include:

• Blue Star Families, which aims to strengthen and support military families, will amplify its Caregiver Respite Program. This program will offer 14 respite events that promote caregiver self-care and peer connections to over 200 caregivers and their families who may not have a community of their own. The events will be held in Washington, D.C., San Antonio and San Diego. As a follow-up to this program, Blue Star Families and the Foundation will collaborate to create a “caregiver respite event” toolkit for cities across the nation to use as a model to create their own respite programs serving local military and veteran caregivers.

• Southern Caregiver Resource Center has a 30-year history of providing comprehensive, free support services for family caregivers caring for adults with chronic and/or disabling conditions in the Southern California region. Through this grant, SCRC will continue and expand Operation Family Caregiver as well as other support services to help military caregivers throughout California learn to balance their needs against the demands of caregiving.

Selection criteria for the grants include: the organization’s effectiveness in addressing military caregivers’ unique needs as determined by the Foundation-commissioned RAND study which established baseline research on the status of military caregivers; alignment with the Foundation’s eight critical impact areas: community support at home, education and training, employment, faith and spirituality, financial and legal support, mental and physical health, military family support and respite care; use of evidence-based resources to inform the creation of effective programming for caregivers; and the replicability of the program.
2017 Hidden Heroes Fund grant recipients are as follows:

• American Red Cross
• Blue Star Families
• Centerstone Military Services
• Code of Support
• Home Base
• The Military Family Research Institute (MFRI)
• Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC)
• Military Officers Association of America (MOAA)
• Public Counsel
• Project Sanctuary
• Southern Caregiver Resource Center
• Tidewater Arts Outreach
• Vail Veterans Program
• Yellow Ribbon Fund

About The Elizabeth Dole Foundation

The mission of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation is to strengthen and empower America’s military caregivers and their families by raising public awareness, driving research, championing policy, and leading collaborations that make a significant impact on their lives. Learn more about the Hidden Heroes at www.HiddenHeroes.org.

About Hidden Heroes

Hidden Heroes, an initiative of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, brings vital attention to the untold stories of military caregivers and seeks solutions for the tremendous challenges and long-term needs they face. Hidden Heroes’ goals are to raise awareness of the issues military caregivers confront every day, inspire individuals, businesses, communities, and civic, faith and government leaders to take action in supporting military caregivers in their communities, and establish a national registry, encouraging military caregivers to register at HiddenHeroes.org to better connect them to helpful resources and support.

About Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families builds communities that support military families by connecting research and data to programs and solutions, including career development tools, local community events for families, and caregiver support. Since its inception in 2009, Blue Star Families has engaged tens of thousands of volunteers and served more than 1.5 million military family members. Blue Star Families believes that all military families should be able to serve and simultaneously build thriving and healthy families. With Blue Star Families, military families can find answers to their challenges anywhere they are. Visit www.bluestarfam.org for more information.

About Southern Caregiver Resource Center

Southern Caregiver Resource Center (SCRC) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that provides free support services for family caregivers caring for adults with chronic and/or disabling conditions. SCRC has been providing services to caregivers in San Diego County since 1987. SCRC continues to be the leading provider of caregiver support services in San Diego and Imperial counties, serving 30,000 clients annually. To learn more about SCRC, visit http://caregivercenter.org.