PARALYZED VETERANS OF AMERICA, GATEWAY CHAPTER
Veterans with Spinal Cord Injuries or Disease, Living Life to the Fullest
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Paralyzed Veterans of America is a congressionally chartered veterans service organization founded in 1946. We have developed unique expertise on a wide variety of issues involving the special needs of our members--honorably discharged veterans of the armed forces who have experienced spinal cord injury or dysfunction. Gateway is one of 33 Chapters of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). Our local Chapter was chartered in the State of Missouri in October 1976. We are an accredited charity member of the Better Business Bureau, meeting all 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability, and have received their designation as an Honor Roll Charity. We are also a Guidestar Platinum Level Participant. Out of the 33 Chapters of PVA, we have been awarded the “Most Outstanding Chapter” for 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019. Our 2020 fiscal year audit shows that out of every dollar we spent, about $.90 went to programs for members. A program expense ratio of at least 65% is required for BBB approval
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Transportation, Patient Services, Sports & Recreation, Advocacy
Major programs are PATIENT SERVICES-serving our members while in the hospital; MEMBERSHIP SERVICES-reaching out to our more than 650 members; SPORTS & RECREATION- providing opportunities to participate in sports or other social activities to meet the diverse physical abilities our members represent; ADVOCACY & LEGISLATION-to help our leaders at the local, state and national levels to understand the needs or this group of military veterans; TRANSPORTATION-helping our veterans and the disabled to get to the Jefferson Barracks and John Cochran VA Medical centers; HOSPITAL LIAISON-committee that serves our members at the hospital level by representing them and assuring that they receive excellent care at the St. Louis area, Columbia & Kansas City VA hospitals; all programs are geared toward meeting the needs of the honorably discharged spinal cord injury or disease (SCI/D) veterans of the armed forces of the United States of America.
Where we work
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of clients served
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Transportation, Patient Services, Sports & Recreation, Advocacy
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This metric tracks the number of individual occurrences of members directly impacted through accessing one or more of the programs being tracked.
Number of participants engaged in programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Transportation, Patient Services, Sports & Recreation, Advocacy
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This metric tracks the number of individuals who are actively engaged in one or more of the programs listed.
Number of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Transportation, Patient Services, Sports & Recreation, Advocacy
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This metric tracks the number of individuals who volunteer their time at one or more events or in one or more of our member programs.
Number of homeowners/tenants rating their feeling of safety in and around their homes as satisfactory
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with intellectual disabilities
Related Program
Transportation, Patient Services, Sports & Recreation, Advocacy
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This metric tracks the number of individuals who can safely navigate their home's interior and exterior as a direct result of a home accessibility grant provided to them by the Gateway Chapter.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
To continually work to create an America where all veterans and people with disabilities, and their families, have everything they need to live full and productive lives.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Advocacy/Government Relations:
The prime focus of the Advocacy and Government Relations program is to improve the quality of life of our members. This is achieved through active involvement with local, state, and national legislation, partnership with other PVA Chapters and veterans service organizations, an active relationship with VA Medical Center staff and therapists, and continuous research and community involvement. The Gateway Chapter President, Stanley Brown, is the acting Government Relations Director and works on various advocacy issues, member events and ancillary duties.
Hospital Liaison:
Ensuring quality medical care for our members is the most critical objective of our organization and always proves to be the most challenging. This is the primary reason why the Chapter has a voluntary Hospital Committee comprised of members who advocate for quality healthcare for veterans with spinal cord injury or disease (SCI/D). Currently, the Chapter has a hospital liaison located in the St. Louis area and is in search for a Hospital Liaison for the Kansas City area. An ongoing task for the Hospital Committee is to meet with the SCI/D Chief in St. Louis, and the Medical Center staff and physicians from the VA Medical Centers throughout the state. In addition to meeting with staff, the committee members meet with inpatients and members who may have complaints or issues that are not being addressed regarding their medical care.
Patient Services:
We fund monthly luncheons for the 32 inpatients and numerous outpatients at the Jefferson Barracks SCI/D Unit, which include patients, their families and unit staff. At an average luncheon, we will serve 80-100 people. We also fund holiday dinners for the inpatients. These occasions are a great opportunity for veterans who were injured years ago to meet with and provide support to the newly injured veterans at the spinal cord unit. It also is an opportunity for the family members to meet and share experiences. The Chapter also provides calling cards for patients to keep in touch with their loved ones, day room snacks and soda, volunteer's supplies and various other benefits to our veterans who must spend time in the hospital.
Education / Research
In 2006, the Chapter provided grants to the Kansas City VA Hospital. Every year we contribute to our national organization's research fund. Both organizations follow the National Institute of Health research guidelines. We also help fund continuing education for spinal cord staff when we believe that training will improve the care of our membership. As part of our education program, we often speak with civic groups and schools.
Sports:
The members of the Gateway Paralyzed Veterans of America are actively involved with many sports activities. Our members have participated in swimming, quad rugby, hand cycling, archery, air rifle, bowling, basketball, track and field events, fishing, billiards, table tennis, slalom, sled hockey and weight lifting.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have a staff and corps of volunteers dedicated to successfully implementing these strategies on a local level. We also partner with the Veterans Administration Medical Centers (VAMC) within the state of Missouri to ensure that their staffs are providing the care, rehabilitation and recreational activities that our injured service men and women require. We maintain fiscal responsibility to ensure that these strategies and programs are able to be funded in an ongoing basis.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Quality healthcare is always at the fore front of our mission. We regularly meet with VAMC leadership to ensure that the needs of critically injured or diagnosed veterans are being met at the VA facilities within our catchment area. Through our efforts the quality of care has increased. We have advocated for increased salaries for VA medical staff and a shorter vetting time for new hires. These efforts have realized gains within the VA but there remains a critical shortage of medical staff.
Home accessibility is critical to living independently. Each year we receive increasing requests for home modifications allowing the use of a wheelchair. Each year we are able to provide more funding to this program which is progress but unfortunately we are not able to provide funding for all requests within a given fiscal year.
Accessible automobiles are also critical to ensuring self reliance and providing community integration. Over the last 4 years we have been able to purchase and give to members 3 accessible automobiles each year. Unfortunately at a cost of $35-50,000 for each automobile there remains a large need in this area.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
PARALYZED VETERANS OF AMERICA, GATEWAY CHAPTER
Board of directorsas of 08/23/2022
Rose Ganz
President
Term: 2022 - 2025
Rose M. Ganz
Retired from military service
Bob Huskey
Retired St. Louis County Schools Superintendent
Chad Buder
Retired from military service
Doug Barnes
Retired from military service
Ruth Kult
Retired from military service
Matt Schneider
Retired from military service - Current student
Steve McIntosh
Retired from military service
Louis Monken
Retired from military service
Bonnie Hilburn
Retired from military service
Don Feldott
Retired from military service
Bram Lucieer
Retired from military service
Harry Brown
Retired from military service
Doug Conklin
Retired from military service
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data