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STEP's mission is to build financial self-sufficiency among low income, junior military enlisted members, Veterans, and their families who are facing financial crisis. STEP provides counseling, education, and emergency funds, at no cost to their clients and their families who are in crisis.
Along with financial counseling and education to help them through their crisis, STEP provides families with food, diapers, formula, hygiene products, basic household items, clothing, and children's necessities from their warehouse in San Diego and at remote distribution events.
Grant will provide funds to help families in crisis with basic needs and to provide awareness of and access to STEP's life changing Emergency Financial Assistance (EFA) Program.
Through counseling, education, and emergency funds, Support The Enlisted Project's (STEP's) mission is to build financial self-sufficiency for life-time success.
MOST IMPORTANTLY:
The goal is to not just provide a band aid, but to get to the root causes of the individual's or families' financial challenges, and provide them with the counseling, education, and skill development that will serve them throughout the rest of their lives so that this financial crisis is their last. Every person served through this program will receive information about STEP's EFA Program, and access to resources to help change their lives.
Project Description:
Enlisted service members and their military families experience generational poverty and homelessness. Approximately 25% of these individuals and their families experience food insecurity. STEP's Emergency Financial Assistance (EFA) Program is focused at ending poverty, hunger and preventing homelessness for military families.
To increase the likelihood of success, STEP's clientele must commit to financial counseling, education, and one-on-one personalized support to end their financial crisis.
STEP's WoW program provides service members, Veterans, and their families access to the items they need every day to support their families right where they live and work. Rather than be distracted by how they will provide for their families, enlisted personnel can more easily focus on learning how to budget and plan.
During this "re-education" STEP will distribute food, diapers, hygiene items, and clothes through their Warehouse on Wheels (WoW) program, and warehouse distributions at their headquarters in San Diego.
Funding from this grant will be used to purchase:
• Food
• Diapers
• Formula
• Hygiene Items
These will be distributed on bases and in military housing communities.
Last fiscal year STEP distributed more than 203,250 pounds of food and 168,400 diapers to 6,846 San Diego families through distributions at their warehouse and through their Warehouse on Wheels program.
Club Member Involvement:
Halloween Costumes:
STEP has identified a need for Halloween costumes for the enlisted personnel's children.
DMSB members will sponsor a local drive to ask for donations of gently used Halloween costumes. We will sort and organize costumes ensuring costumes are clean and safe.
On October 19, children and their parents will come to STEPs warehouse to select their costume. For many this will be their first Halloween costume.
Members will provide simple Halloween decorations and some early Trick or Treat Treats.
Ongoing:
Members will participate in ongoing organization
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