Technical Partnership of Arizona, for Arizona Coalition for Military Families

Be Connected: Comprehensive Community Connection

Arizona is home to over half a million veterans, service members, and their families. In the past year, Arizona has repeatedly had the highest COVID-19 case positivity rate in the world. Tribal communities in northern Arizona, including the Navajo and Hopi nations, have been hit especially hard. The Arizona Coalition for Military Families (ACMF) is a collective impact initiative, and a BWF Local Partner, working to build Arizona’s capacity to support veterans, service members, and their families statewide. ACMF began providing COVID-19 relief in 2020 with NFL-BWF support. Of the veterans referred to this program, 33 percent had experienced job loss, 27 percent had experienced housing insecurity, and 73 percent had difficulty meeting basic needs. This NFL-BWF Healthy Lifestyles and Creating Community (HLCC) grant will provide financial relief and resource navigation to 200 veterans and their families living in Arizona, with a focus on rural, tribal, and underserved communities at high risk of adverse outcomes. Specifically, this funding will ensure that veterans and their families maintain access to basic needs such as housing, food, water, firewood, and transportation, and will connect them to resources to address ongoing needs.