VetsAid, Joe Walsh's national 501(c)3 non-profit, announced the disbursement of $260,000 in grants to veterans services organizations based in Southern California or with operations on the ground in Southern California. The funds were raised from the 7th annual concert event which took place on November 12, 2023 at the North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre and featured an out-of-this-world bill with performances by Walsh and Stephen Stills, Jeff Lynne’s ELO, The War on Drugs, The Flaming Lips, Lucius, Jack Tempchin and the San Diego Marine Band.
VetsAid divided the proceeds from the 2023 concert event into various sized grants and all recipients were chosen by Walsh and the VetsAid board after a rigorous application process. Grant recipients were selected and announced just before the concert event last November. The disbursements are as follows:
$30,000 – CreatiVets – Using songwriting, visual arts, music and creative writing to help disabled vets in the Los Angeles area cope with service-related trauma.
$30,000 – Children of Fallen Patriots – Providing college scholarships and educational counseling to military children in Southern California who have lost a parent in the line of duty.
$30,000 – TAPS – Providing compassionate care and comprehensive resources for all those grieving the death of a military or veteran loved one.
$30,000 – Foundation for Women Warriors – Dedicated to honoring and empowering the women veteran community.
$30,000 – Veterans Legal Institute – Providing pro bono legal assistance to homeless, at risk, disabled and low income current and former service members in Orange County and the Inland Empire to eradicate barriers to housing, healthcare, education, and employment and foster self-sufficiency.
$30,000 – Veterans Village of San Diego – Serving San Diego’s veterans and their families in overcoming homelessness, addiction, unemployment, barriers to health and mental health care and related challenges.
$15,000 – Shelter to Soldier – Bringing post 9/11 Southern California veterans together with trained rescue dogs to help both recover and move forward.
$15,000 – Vets’ Community Connections – Connecting veterans, military and their families to the San Diego County community.
$10,000 – Fisher House Southern California – Providing temporary lodging and support to military members, veterans and their families when receiving treatment through a Southern California Navy or VA medical facility.
$10,000 – HunterSeven Foundation – Specializing in medical research and education specifically on the post 9/11 veteran cohort.
$10,000 – Honor Flight San Diego – Escorting San Diego County veterans to Washington, DC to visit and reflect at the Memorials dedicated to their sacrifice and service.
$10,000 – Cal-Diego PVA – Improving the quality of life for veterans of the United States Armed Forces and others who have a spinal cord injury of dysfunction in the San Diego area.
$5,000 – Zero8Hundred – Delivering individualized support to service members, spouses and their families before, during and after transition to thrive in their post military life.
$5,000 – Navy Marine Corps PROUD Foundation – Providing financial and in-kind support to San Diego County’s County’s Navy Marine Corps Relief Society programs & local active duty Sailors, Marines, Veterans, Retirees and their families in need.
Providing support to organizations that care for America’s veterans as well as their families is deeply personal to Walsh, himself a Gold Star survivor whose father died while on active duty on Okinawa, Japan when Walsh was just 20 months old.
“San Diego welcomed us with open arms… on a very cold night! They bundled up and rocked out with us under the stars for a once-in-a-lifetime celebration and salute of our precious veterans and the community we’ve built. VetsAid 2023 was a demonstration of the power of great music to unite, spread joy and be a part of something bigger than all of us… and to me, that’s America.” Walsh explains. “I’m grateful to all the fans, supporters and road dogs who now follow our traveling circus to points across the country. We’ll see you back on the East Coast for 2024!”
Additional event details to be announced.
