A recent Inland Empire Community Foundation (IECF) grant will enhance the efforts of a prominent nonprofit committed to empowering veterans and military service-connected individuals.
Veterans Supplemental Support Network (VSSN), which has long provided significant integrated behavioral healthcare and whole-health resource navigation services, funneled its grant funding to support a mission to expand collaborative partnerships across the Inland Empire. These partnerships are dedicated to delivering direct mental and behavioral healthcare services for military veterans and their dependents.
“With the support of IECF, we brought together community members, Peer Support Navigators, and partner agencies to address the emotional and physical toll of the pandemic and military service-connected injuries,” said Daisy Tate, VSSN’s Co-Founder and Board Chair. “Our goal was to remove barriers to care by increasing access, reducing stigma, and delivering trauma-informed services directly to those most affected.”
VSSN offers a broad range of significant programs such as mental health services, therapy and support groups, volunteering opportunities, and a strong network of resources for health and mental health providers.
A recent launch and expansion of initiatives focused on behavioral health integration stands out. These include individual therapy, group sessions, and community-based wellness events.
Tate is quick to point out one key initiative.
“Our Peer Support Navigators—trained community health workers—guided veterans and their families through care systems, helping them access services and maintain continuity of support,’ she said. “Additionally, we distributed wellness kits, conducted public health education, and collaborated with local providers to ensure comprehensive, wrap-around support was available.”
To be sure, VSSN’s work is admirable. It has long been serving military veterans, their spouses, children, caregivers, and surviving family members, with a strong focus on those disconnected from the VA system, facing hardship, or residing in underserved communities.
The ripple effects of this work stretch far. Each year, VSSN reaches more than 30,000 military and veteran-connected individuals through outreach and engagement. Specifically, in the Inland Empire, it has provided direct wellness and mental/behavioral health services to more than 1,750 military-connected families, which ensured that they received culturally responsive care and navigation tailored to their needs.
“The impact has been transformative,” Tate said, “and this grant enabled us to increase access to care, re-engage families who had fallen through the cracks, and rebuild trust in health systems.”
One memorable success story involves a military spouse and her teenage son, both struggling with grief and isolation following the pandemic.
“Through our program, they received consistent counseling, school-based mental health support, and eventually became active volunteers,” Tate said. “Their story exemplifies the full-circle healing made possible through this initiative.”
Volunteers also play a critical role in helping the nonprofit with a number of services, whether it be through directives preventing hardship and ensuring that every veteran receives the care, support, and recognition they deserve or a mission to end suicide. Individuals interested in making a difference in a positive way, can register on VSSN’s website.
Looking ahead, Tate is optimistic.
“We are preparing to launch the VSSN Kiosk Partnership Initiative, a forward-looking effort to install smart wellness kiosks in public and community spaces,” she said.
These kiosks will provide access to mental health screenings, telehealth services, and peer navigation in real time.
“Our goal is to make physical and behavioral health support more accessible and stigma-free,” Tate added. “We are actively seeking technical partners and funders to help scale this innovative model across the region and beyond.”
Learn more at vetsupportnet.org.
This story originally appeared in the Press Enterprise, July 2025.
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