Giving Compass' Take:

• Veterans are struggling with issues such as loneliness and connection once they resettle in new places. America's Warrior Partnership aims to connect veterans with each other and organize engagement opportunities between vets and other service organizations so that they can keep giving back to the local community. 

• How is this approach to veteran health beneficial for all parties involved? How difficult is it to connect veteran networks together and then to other organizations?

• Read about philanthropic efforts to help homeless veterans gain more opportunities.

Once military veterans leave the service, they often leave their close friends from the service behind. The result is a sort of hidden danger that’s not readily addressed by traditional veteran health benefits: How do you deal with that loneliness and a feeling of disconnection?

According to a new report, around half of America’s former service members want more opportunities to connect with each other.

They’re also seeking new ways to stay fit and have fun, and to volunteer in the community. If community groups can find a way to encourage that, it might benefit everyone. The findings come from America’s Warrior Partnership, a nonprofit that helps local communities and other nonprofit groups find new ways to connect with veterans.

Of course, America’s Warrior Partnership is already working in this area. The group uses a “community integration” approach to local troop building by both searching for and connecting with all vets, regardless of discharge status, after they’ve resettled in different cities. It then finds ways to connect this localized network with each other and other aid groups that might both offer services or are able to benefit from the additional people power.

Regardless of what tactics civic and social groups may use to support former service members, one major key is to make sure those efforts are designed for long-term engagement.

Read the full article about veteran health by Ben Paynter at Fast Company.