The George W. Bush Institute’s Veteran Wellness Alliance is a coalition of veteran peer-to-peer networks and best-in-class mental and brain health care providers who connect veterans, service members, their families, caretakers, and survivors to high-quality care for their invisible wounds.
Q&A with Elizabeth Field, Chief Operating Officer
Meet the Veteran Wellness Alliance: The Elizabeth Dole Foundation
The George W. Bush Institute’s Veteran Wellness Alliance is a coalition of veteran peer-to-peer networks and best-in-class mental and brain health care providers who connect veterans, service members, their families, caretakers, and survivors to high-quality care for their invisible wounds.
Please tell us about Elizabeth Dole Foundation’s mission.
This question is a timely one, as we recently published our new Strategic Plan. The exercise we went through to develop the plan was enormously valuable, because it allowed us to reflect on who we’re serving, how, and why, and it led us to develop new mission and vision statements. At the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, our mission is to empower military and veteran caregivers, their families, and communities through programs, partnerships, and advocacy that lead to innovative, impactful, and sustainable solutions. Our vision is an America where caregivers and the people they care for thrive. You’ll notice that the words military and veteran don’t show up in that vision statement, and that’s not an accident. About a third of adults in the United States today are caregivers, and while our focus is on military and veteran caregivers (many of whom face some of the hardest challenges that caregivers can experience), we know that a rising tide lifts all boats. So, we will take and harness any opportunity we can that we know will benefit our community.
The Elizabeth Dole Foundation has four key pillars that drive the mission: strengthening emotional and mental wellbeing; growing and sustaining economic mobility; improving support and outcomes for caregiving youth and families; and fostering supportive care ecosystems for veterans and their caregivers. How does the Elizabethan Dole Foundation’s mission overlap with the goals and mission of the Veteran Wellness Alliance in supporting veterans and their families?
There’s so much alignment here. Quite often, another term for veteran family member is “veteran caregiver.” The adage of “it’s not just the service member who serves; it’s the whole family” is equally true of veteran families. And we know from research we commissioned that military and veteran caregivers (who we call “hidden heroes”) have high rates of stress, depression, and suicidal ideation. That’s where our work in that first strategic pillar comes in. As part of the Veteran Wellness Alliance, we help caregivers access the mental health support they need – one of our key objectives. I also want to emphasize something that I know others in the Alliance appreciate—the challenges facing military and veteran families are interconnected. If a family is struggling financially, it can take a toll on their mental health. If a child in a veteran household is struggling because they’re learning what it means to live with a parent with an invisible wound of war, that, too, can impact the whole family. We at the Elizabeth Dole Foundation seek to address all these interconnected problems, recognizing that only by doing so holistically will we succeed in helping families thrive.
Can you share a story that illustrates the impact of the Hidden Heroes campaign or the Dole Caregiver Fellowship?
One of my favorite stories is about one of our newest Dole Caregivers—Kylie Briest. Although Kylie only recently became a Dole Fellow, she is not new to the Elizabeth Dole Foundation. Her mother was also a Fellow ten years ago, drawn to the Foundation for its many resources, peer support, and opportunities to advocate for others like her. Kylie’s dad, who served in the South Dakota National Guard, was injured in Iraq when she was only 3 years old. He sustained a severe traumatic brain injury, leading to challenges, such as blindness, seizures, and difficulty with mobility and speech, and requiring 24/7 care. Kylie helped her mom care for him, making her one of about 5.5 million children in the United States who live with and help care for an ill, injured, or wounded veteran or service member. We call these kids “hidden helpers,” and we know that, while these kids often have more pro-social behaviors than their non-caregiving peers, they can also face significant challenges like missing school or experiencing behavioral health problems. Kylie was so inspired by her mom’s accomplishments as a Dole Fellow, motivated by her own life experience as a “hidden helper,” and committed to advocating for others like her that she became our first “2nd generation” Dole Caregiver Fellow. Now a young adult—living on her own and exploring her career as a nurse (a vocation inspired by her experience caring for her dad), but also continuing to support her dad—Kylie is a true role model. I am so excited to see her share her journey from “hidden helper” to “hidden hero” with others and to watch her make a difference for young adults navigating that same transition.
What advice would you give service members and their families when seeking caregivers in the veteran and military community?
First, please know that you are not alone and asking for help is a heroic act. The Veteran Wellness Alliance is just one of many, many resources out there to support you. If you are helping care for a service member or veteran who, due to service in the military, has been wounded or injured or struck with a debilitating illness like ALS, the Elizabeth Dole Foundation is here to help. Whether you think of yourself as a “caregiver” or not, you deserve all the support you can get. So please go to our website: elizabethdolefoundation.org, click on “Find Help,” and there you will find information on everything from how to get immediate financial assistance to how you can join our online community of thousands of military and veteran caregivers to how you can participate in some of our programming around mental and financial wellness.
Looking ahead, what gives you hope for the future of wellness in the veteran and military service space?
One of the most promising recent developments was the passage late last year of the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act. This landmark legislation, which we worked tirelessly along with other organizations in our community to advance, passed Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support—a rarity these days. As the Department of Veterans Affairs moves forward to implement the Dole Act, we know that it will deliver life-changing (and even lifesaving) support for veterans, their caregivers, and families across the nation.
