It takes immense courage to serve. It takes a different kind of courage to start over.
This Military Appreciation Month, Goodwill Silicon Valley honors the veterans and military families across our community who have done both.
The Challenges Veterans Face Coming Home
For many veterans, the transition home carries challenges that are invisible to others. Housing instability, financial hardship, barriers to employment, and the high cost of living in Silicon Valley can quickly turn temporary setbacks into long-term crises without the right support in place.
Because every veteran’s journey, challenges, and career background are unique, the solutions must be just as individualized. Our Veterans Services team, led by former service members who understand these transition hurdles firsthand, delivers personalized, zero-cost support for these heroes and their families year-round.
2025 By the Numbers
In 2025, the veterans and families who came through our doors did the hard work of starting over. Here is what that looked like:
- 139 Local Lives Stabilized: 139 veterans and family members were provided with safe, stable housing.
- 50 Crisis Interventions: 50 veteran households broke the cycle of housing instability by stopping homelessness before it started. We helped 29 struggling families secure stable housing and transitioned 21 families from homelessness into permanent housing.
- $3 Million in Estimated Taxpayer Savings: By helping families achieve permanent housing stability, our programs reduced reliance on emergency shelters, crisis-response systems, and long-term public assistance.
Discovering the Next Mission
Stable housing is the foundation for starting over. But for many veterans, the next challenge is finding meaningful work in a civilian job market that doesn’t always recognize what veterans bring to the table.
Veterans return home with extraordinary skills such as leadership under pressure, technical expertise, and discipline that most employers would pay a premium for. Yet the gap between military experience and civilian hiring can be significant. Our programs help bridge that gap, connecting veterans to career pathways in high-demand industries and partnering with veteran-ready employers across Silicon Valley.
How You Can Help
This work is only possible because of you.
Every donation and purchase at Goodwill Silicon Valley keeps these services free for the veterans who need them most. When you drop off a bag of clothes or shop at one of our 23 locations across Santa Clara and San Benito Counties, you are directly funding programs like this one.
Your generosity is someone else’s stability.
Do you know a veteran who could benefit from these services? Share this article or reach out directly — support is available year-round, at no cost.
➡️ goodwillsv.org/veterans-services 📩 To partner with us or hire veterans: 408-869-9256
