So which of the charities that supports veterans does a good job from the point of view of people receiving benefits?

2020-04-29T10:28:13-04:00

I have been blessed in my career after the military to be able to support charities that benefit veterans. I’ve done the regular vetting on these charities with the online rating services, but I want to know from the view point of people who depend on these charities for services, which charities do the best job. Which are the easiest to work with? I want my charity dollars to get to those who need it most. Please be specific. I pick several each year to donate to, so your feedback will help me decide which are the best from the vets’ perspective.

Response by SFC Ralph E Kelley made Apr 29 at 2020 11:47 AM

2020-04-29T11:47:30-04:00

RED Cross - Every time I took a soldier to them they got the soldier what he needed - mind you the soldier had to often pay them back but I could have them on an airplane by the end of the day.
Sorry to say it but whenever I took my young soldiers to AER - they weren't helped. I'm not sure of what their 'help criteria' is and the people that ran it for our units didn't seem to know either. Usually there wasn't a way locally where they could approve stuff - they always had to 'check with yaky-yakie' at higher'.
I believe AER - which I think gave grants (not loans) had stricter requirements.

Response by SSG Dale London made Apr 29 at 2020 12:53 PM

2020-04-29T12:53:48-04:00

When I was still serving it was a tossup between Army Emergency Relief and the Red Cross. Now that I am a disabled vet, I would have to say that DAV has been the most useful. As a life-member it pains me to confess that the VFW has been next to useless.