MOUNTAIN VALOR VETERAN SERVICES

About Mountain Valor

Mountain Valor is a veteran-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to serving veterans and their families across rural Virginia—regions where access to benefits, healthcare, transportation, and supportive services is consistently limited or nonexistent. Since our founding in 2024, we have assisted more than 1,200 veterans, spouses, caregivers, and surviving family members through direct benefits navigation, outreach events, caregiver support, and community partnership programs.

More than 214,000 veterans in Virginia live in rural areas, and many face higher disability rates, aging-related needs, digital access barriers, and long travel distances for even basic VA services. Mountain Valor exists to bridge this gap by meeting veterans where they are—physically, emotionally, and logistically.

Mission

To empower veterans and their families by connecting them with the tools, education, and community they need to thrive—no matter how far they live from the nearest military installation, VA hospital, or support network.

Why Rural Veterans Need Targeted Support
• Rural veterans are less likely to live near a VA facility and more likely to delay or decline care due to distance, cost, or lack of transportation.
• Over 40% of Virginia’s veterans are age 65 or older, many living with service-connected conditions and complex paperwork they never received help navigating.
• Broadband access in many rural counties remains limited, cutting off access to telehealth, VA claims portals, and virtual support systems.
• Spouses and caregivers—often in their 60s, 70s, or 80s—are attempting to manage benefits, disability care, and financial uncertainty without formal support.

Rural veterans are not “hard to reach.” They are unreached.

Core Program Areas
1. Rural Outreach and Benefits Navigation
Weekly in-person outreach events from May through November, hosted in libraries, community centers, farms, fairgrounds, and rural gathering spaces. Services include:

• One-on-one VA and state benefits navigation
• Assistance with disability claims, VA healthcare enrollment, and survivor benefits
• Referrals to vetted housing, mental health, and caregiver resources
• Printed and large-print materials for veterans with visual or cognitive challenges

2. Caregiver and Survivor Support

• Guidance for spouses and family members navigating VA systems
• Assistance with VA caregiver programs, respite options, and survivor benefit preparation
• End-of-life planning support (DD-214 requests, funeral honors, burial benefits, DIC assistance)

3. Aging Veterans Initiative

• Distribution of large-print, plain-language resource packets statewide
• On-site support inside long-term care facilities and senior living communities
• Assistance for family members navigating benefits from out of state

4. Mountain Valor Fest
An annual large-scale event that brings together hundreds of veterans, families, and vetted service providers for a full day of direct services, education, peer support, and community connection. Free to all participants.
5. Education and Awareness

• The Mountain Valor Podcast, answering real veteran questions in plain English
• Resource guides, outreach briefs, and community education tools
• Advocacy to ensure rural veteran voices are represented in planning and policy discussions

Partnerships and Collaboration

Mountain Valor maintains formal collaboration with:
• Virginia Department of Veterans Services (DVS)
• Participation in the VA’s Community Engagement and Partnership Coordinators (CEPC) suicide-prevention initiative
• Local community action agencies, libraries, senior centers, colleges, and veteran service officers
• Corporate and community sponsors including BAE Systems, Angels in the Attic, Firebrand Media, Finn Graphics, Roanoke Co-op, and others

These partnerships ensure referrals are trustworthy, trauma-informed, and aligned with existing state and federal systems.

A Snapshot of Who We Serve
• A 78-year-old Vietnam veteran now in a long-term care facility; his wife needs help understanding what the VA covers, what costs shift to the family, and what benefits she may qualify for once he passes.
• A wife juggling two kids while managing her husband’s PTSD and dementia.
• A veteran in a rural mountain county with no transportation, unaware he’s eligible for 100% disability back pay.
• A widow unsure how to access VA burial benefits because the nearest VA office is 90+ miles away, and she has limited internet access and minimal computer literacy.

How Donations Are Used

Your support directly funds:
• Fuel, travel, and lodging costs for weekly rural outreach
• Printing and distribution of large-print, plain-language resource packets
• Venue, accessibility, logistics, and transportation costs for Mountain Valor Fest
• Insurance, compliance, and trauma-informed service training
• Program coordination, volunteer management, and resource development
• Outreach materials for veterans, spouses, and caregivers across rural Virginia

Mountain Valor does not spend donor dollars on political activity, lobbying, or high-overhead consulting. Our work is community-centered, field-driven, and outcomes-focused.

What Makes Mountain Valor Different
• We go to the veteran, not the other way around
• We operate in regions most programs skip due to distance or cost
• We serve the entire household, not just the veteran
• We use trauma-aware, veteran-led communication to build trust
• We understand the systems because we’ve lived inside them
• We are field-tested, community-embedded, and partnership-aligned

Call to Action

Your support allows Mountain Valor to continue showing up in the places most people overlook—libraries, farms, backroad communities, care facilities, and townships that have been left off the map.

When you fund Mountain Valor, you are not just supporting a program. You are restoring dignity, access, and justice for the veterans who served this nation but now live far from its resources.

Rural doesn’t mean unreachable. And it should never mean forgotten.