Home Depot commits $1B towards veteran causes
The Home Depot Foundation is making a huge commitment in its efforts to aid veteran causes – including homelessness.
The home improvement giant’s charitable organization is increasing its total commitment to veteran causes to $1 billion by 2032. A key use of the new investment will be to help resolve immediate and long-term veteran housing challenges, including veteran homelessness, through “scalable, innovative solutions.”
Home Depot says its foundation has invested more than $650 million in veteran causes so far, and improved more than 70,000 veteran homes and facilities, while surpassing $1 billion in total charitable giving.
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"We believe every veteran deserves a safe place to call home," said Erin Izen, executive director of The Home Depot Foundation. "Our $1 billion commitment supports the partnerships and solutions needed to help more veterans move from uncertainty to long-term stability."
The Home Depot Foundation’s investments will go towards the following objectives and organizations:
- Collaborating Across Partners: With the National Housing Conference, the foundation has convened a national summit of nonprofit partners and industry leaders to discuss the systemic causes of veteran housing insecurity and identify solutions.
- Removing Barriers to Housing Access: The Landlords, Organizations, and Veterans Engagement (LOVE) Fund with Open Doors Atlanta and the U.S.VETS Master Lease Program will accelerate veteran housing placements by removing rental barriers, such as security deposits and application fees, or by leasing units directly from property owners.
- Homelessness Prevention and Permanent Housing: The latest grants help provide housing stabilization resources, including repairs to transitional housing facilities, and renovations for permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless veterans, through partners like Operation Homefront and Community Solutions.
- Alternative Housing Models: Additional funding will support alternative solutions, such as Purple Heart Homes' modular home builds for senior and housing insecure veterans.
"Master leasing is an innovative solution that helps veterans overcome one of the biggest obstacles to housing stability: access to affordable homes in highly competitive rental markets," said Darryl Vincent, president and CEO of U.S.VETS. "The Home Depot Foundation provides the support to test and refine new models like this in cities across the country, so more veterans have the stability they need to rebuild their lives and move forward with confidence."
Since its founding in 2011, The Home Depot Foundation says it has helped contribute to a more than 50% reduction in veteran homelessness. Its past initiatives have included expanding access to transitional and permanent supportive housing facilities with partners like VOA, completing critical home repairs and accessibility modifications alongside organizations like Habitat for Humanity and Semper Fi & America's Fund, and more.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Home Depot operates more than 2,360 retail stores and over 1,340 SRS locations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico.
