Volunteers of America:
2023 Impact Report
Our Vision
A world where all people live in safety, with social, emotional, and physical well-being, spiritual fulfillment, justice, and hope.
Prioritizing Humanity
A Message from the CEO And Board Chair
Dear Friend,
Demand for the critical services we provide has never been higher. While our economy in many ways has shown great improvement over the past year, a number of factors (inflation, underemployment, the dire shortage of affordable housing) continue to have the most profound effect on the lives of the many marginalized communities Volunteers of America serves. Over more than a decade as national president, I have seen demand for Volunteers of America’s programming grow significantly. VOA has greatly expanded the number of people we serve across our core program areas, including mental health and addiction, housing and homelessness, corrections, and veterans services – more than a 25 percent increase compared to 2010. During the same period, our services to veterans have tripled, growing from 7,500 veterans served to 25,000 veterans served annually.
VOA participation in the VA’s Supportive Services to Veteran Families homeless assistance program has surged to $140 million in 2023, making it the largest source of federal grant programming to VOA affiliates. We also continue to witness a rapidly aging population and the resulting impact on demand for our senior housing and services. At VOA, we believe Healthy Communities for All should be available to everyone. For too long, older adults have faced systemic barriers to accessing support, healthcare, and emerging technology that allow for successful aging in place. This can lead to poorer health, social isolation, and a diminished quality of life. We must prioritize community engagement and value lived experience. The challenges never end, and it takes a village to do the work that we do. Please join us in building a brighter future for all we serve and achieving our lofty vision of Healthy Communities for All! Thank you, and God bless.
Sincerely,
Mike King
National President and CEO, Volunteers of America
“We must dismantle systems of inequity that … have prevented many from fully accessing the services and supports needed to be healthy and to thrive.”
More Than a Nonprofit.
Since 1896, we have served this country through two world wars, the Great Depression, natural disasters, and now, through COVID-19. As we emerge on this side of the pandemic, we continue to innovate to meet the needs of America’s underserved communities, touching the lives of 1.5 million people annually in over 400 communities across 46 states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
Our Numbers in Brief
People Served Annually: 2 MILLION
Communities Served: 450
Aggregate Revenue: $1.7 BILLION
In addition to our many diverse services, Volunteers of America is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit providers of quality affordable housing, with over 25,000 residents living in more than 500 multifamily communities. The organization is also a major provider of skilled long-term nursing care and health services, operating nursing facilities, residential assisted-living complexes, and retirement communities.
| SERVICE CATEGORY | SERVED ANNUALLY |
| Mental Health & Addiction Treatment | 150,000 |
| Children and Family | 115,000 |
| Housing & Homeless Services | 100,000 |
| Criminal Justice & Re-Entry | 70,000 |
| Senior Services | 45,000 |
| Veteran Homeless Services | 25,000 |
| Community Health | 13,000 |
| Disability Support & Long-Term Care | 8,000 |
47 States Served, Plus DC and Puerto Rico
Our greatest strength as an organization is what we are “in community.”
We support our 15,000+ team members to serve over 2 million people each year in more than 400 communities.
Healthy Communities for All:
Community Health Workers
Community Health Workers (CHW) are frontline public health professionals who are trusted members of a community. This intimate relationship enables a CHW to serve as a liaison between health care professionals, social services and the community to empower those in need. They work to increase healthcare knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities, including outreach, community education, informal counseling, social support, and advocacy. At VOA, our CHWs are navigators, outreach agents, and health education providers helping those in need access services while also increasing a patient’s confidence when interacting with providers.
A focus on meeting clients where they are.
Volunteers of America’s Family Focused Recovery Model (FFR) for pregnant and parenting women at Freedom House in Kentucky addresses the substance use disorder (SUD) crisis by providing evidence-based, outcome-oriented solutions that help moms, their children, and their broader communities regain independence from substance abuse.
This nationally-recognized program offers comprehensive care, including individual and family therapy, peer support, and medicationassisted treatment, designed to help moms deliver healthy babies. With a focus on family unity, this model also provides prevention for children – addressing and reducing childhood trauma and disrupting generational SUD. In 2020, VOA added a second Freedom House in Southeastern Kentucky, bringing treatment and services to a region at the epicenter of the national opioid crisis. To further address current levels of need, there and in other parts of Kentucky, VOA plans additional expansion in the state. Family unity is a primary focus in the FFR model. Pregnant and parenting moms can bring children into treatment with no restriction.
on the age or number of children, and the children’s services are age-appropriate and individualized. As a part of this program, VOA provides clinical treatment and support services for children residing with the mother, including assessments, childcare and recreation, medical care and prevention, and mental health and trauma services. As the nation’s drug crisis continues to escalate since the pandemic, overdose deaths of pregnant and postpartum women have doubled, and Volunteers of America is scaling our nationally recognized Family Focused Recovery services for moms and children into new states. Using a health equity lens, existing programs in Kentucky, Indiana, Georgia, Oregon, and South Dakota will be joined by new culturally responsive programs in Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Virginia. The generosity of the Humana Foundation, along with many other donors, are making this expansion possible.
40 Hours per Week …
…in therapy sessions, focusing solely on their recovery and bonding with their infants and children.
Healthy Communities for All: Family-Focused Recovery
The VOA FFR model aligns with the US Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS) recommended expansion of consistent, evidence-based services for pregnant women with SUD and their children. The VOA FFR model removes deterrents to treatment and promotes the adoption of evidence-based practices, including medical-assisted treatment.
Future Fund Community Health Incubator
The Futures Fund Community Health Incubator, launched in 2022 with the support of Humana Foundation, includes grants, business training and mentoring, as well as potential partnership opportunities and venture capital investments to help companies scale and fundraise.
How It Works The Community Health Incubator is sponsored by the Humana Foundation and powered by SEED SPOT – an entrepreneurship support organization which, since 2012, has helped over 3,000 founders raise over $122 million in capital and generate over 5,300 jobs. The incubator guides up to six Startup Founders through a 12-week program where participants benefit from expertise and collaboration with the VOA network, gain business training and tailored mentorship, and engage in health equity training. The Community Health Incubator also supports entrepreneurship from within Volunteers of America affiliates. To date, these have included VOA programs to address food insecurity in Upstate New York, provide medical respite in New Orleans, and expand a Care Options Network in Minnesota. Incubator Cohorts The VOA Futures Fund Community Health Incubator provides each startup company with grants and expert mentoring to support the continued development of their business. VOA staff, Futures Fund board of directors, and the incubator’s extraordinary advisory board help to identify pilots and joint venture opportunities these companies can have with VOA Affiliates and other strategic partners across the country. By participating in the incubator, each company is also eligible for a potential follow-on investment of up to $200,000
STEPHEN SAMUELS
VOA National Vice President,
Innovation & Impact Investing
Innovative Dwellings:
A solid foundation for a successful life.
Our network of affordable housing facilities now includes more than 500 properties in 42 states and Puerto Rico. We have over 20,000 units in urban complexes, small rural developments, elderly housing, multifamily housing, and housing for those with disabilities. Volunteers of America believes in a resident-centered approach to housing beginning at the point of design and construction through day-to-day operations of our housing properties.
Since 1896, Volunteers of America has grown into one of the nation’s largest and most effective nonprofit housing organizations.
Providing a safe, stable place for more than 25,000 people each year, including seniors, families and those with special needs, allows us to also offer the services we are known for in settings where our clients and residents feel safe and cared for.
In our experience, when supportive services are provided in concert with affordable housing, seniors enjoy healthier, longer lives and avoid being dependent on high-cost medical care alternatives. We are committed to developing permanent supportive housing and preserving federally assisted housing in danger of being lost to the affordable housing stock.
Double the housing in half the time.
Volunteers of America’s Innovative Dwellings initiative is reimagining the traditional multifamily housing model. With funding from Wells Fargo Foundation, VOA is using repurposed buildings and materials to create modular, sustainable housing in four select markets for unhoused veterans at double the speed and half the cost.
An accessory dwelling unit (ADU) provides additional living quarters on single-family lots that are independent of the primary dwelling unit. They can be attached or detached from the main residence and are equipped with kitchen and bathroom facilities. They can be developed off-site and installed efficiently on site. ADUs also cost less than a new, single-family home on a separate lot. They are also able to be developed at a faster rate and built in a third of the time.
ReST for Veterans and First Responders
The Shay Moral Injury Center at Volunteers of America is dedicated to education and research on moral distress and moral injury, and to the provision of recovery strategies that are contextual, adaptable, and scalable. We implement recovery programs in partnership with VOA affiliates, as well as other organizations, communities, and institutions. We educate professionals in diverse fields, including chaplaincy, social services, mental health, healthcare, spiritual care, and ministry.
What Is Moral Injury?
Moral injury is the suffering people experience when we are in high-stakes situations, things go wrong, and harm results. The suffering is grounded in our moral conscience, which struggles to make sense of devastating experiences that challenge our identities, deepest moral codes, and ability to trust in others or ourselves. The harm may be something we did, something we witnessed, something we failed to prevent, or something that was done to us. It results in moral emotions such as shame, guilt, outrage, and sorrow, and withdrawal from significant relationships.
VOA|ReST is designed to alleviate the pain, suffering and isolation that accompany existential crises resulting from moral conflicts that are well known to devastate mental health and wellbeing, such as:
• cumulative experiences of trauma
• being subjected to harm by others or unjust systems
• witnessing violence or irreversible harm to others
• failing to or being prevented from doing what is right
• perpetrating harm
VOA|ReST uses confidential, small support groups facilitated by trained peer specialists who understand moral healing and offer both the compassion and space needed to process negative moral emotions.
Operation Backpack
School’s Out and Operation Backpack® is in!
Back to school should not be a burden, but for many families in need, buying the necessary school supplies is challenging. Our Operation Backpack® campaign is working to fill this gap — providing backpacks and school supplies to students from preschool to high school in underserved communities. Driven by private philanthropy and corporate partnerships, Operation Backpack® is making sure every kid, regardless of their background, has the essential supplies they need to succeed.
49,000 backpacks distributed in 14 communities in 2023
Our National Partners
VOA in the News
National Board of Directors
Building Strong Relationships with Policymakers
VOA works hard in our nation’s capital, and in statehouses nationwide, to advocate for the needs of those we serve. Our policy priorities for the 118th Congress focus on helping all our neighbors achieve their full potential. Our priorities address the most urgent needs facing the individuals and communities we serve: affordable housing, workforce and employment, veterans’ services, behavioral health, and charitable giving incentives.
Volunteers of America National Services
Volunteers of America National Services is a wholly controlled nonprofit subsidiary of Volunteers of America. National Services is organized and operated to “advance, support, promote, and administer health, housing, and supportive services” in pursuit of the objectives of Volunteers of America. National Services employs more than 3,000 professionals across the country to operate its housing and healthcare programs.
Housing Development and Operations
National Services is the sponsor and parent entity for new Volunteers of America housing development projects. National Services’ current housing strategic business plan focuses on constructing or acquiring housing in key markets. In addition, National Services develops permanent supportive housing, including homes for veterans, where Volunteers of America affiliates have identified a need and ability to provide the services. Finally, National Services focuses on preserving federally assisted affordable housing in danger of being lost.
Healthcare Development and Operations
The National Services health services group operates six comprehensive campuses (skilled nursing and independent/assisted living), five skilled nursing facilities, four assisted living facilities, three licensed home health agencies, three Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) sites, and one senior meal program. National Services also owns a continuing care residential community in Florida.
