SHELTER TO SOLDIER INC

Every year, 670,000 dogs are euthanized nationwide. We rescue dogs that may otherwise be overlooked, providing them a future with a purpose and a life that is fulfilled by their bond with a veteran in need. Every day, we lose an average of 16 veterans to suicide. In the OIF/OEF veteran population that we serve, PTS has been found to be a risk factor for suicide ideation. We know that the healing impact a highly trained service dog provides for psychological treatment in this population improves their overall quality of life, relationships, confidence and sense of security. Our service dogs help these veterans integrate back into society and find their purpose, often for the first time since their military service.
PTS is a major problem for our men and women in uniform, and its effects last far and beyond the battlefield. One in five veterans returning from combat tours suffers from Post Traumatic Stress (PTS), and that is just diagnosed cases. Our veteran applicants may not have physical injuries, but the mental injuries sustained during combat have limited their lives such that they find difficulty participating in their families, in society as a whole, and in relationships. Many of them are so debilitated that they are unable to leave their homes or engage in any meaningful way in society. With the combination of therapy, medications and the companionship of a service dog who does not judge them but does inspire and require them to get up and out, we are seeing our veterans experience a new lease on life with a boost in their confidence, increased productivity, and improved relationships through the sense of security and companionship that their service dog provides. The goal of Shelter to Soldier is ultimately to "Save Lives, Two at a Time," that of a dog from the shelter and that of a veteran suffering from the perils of mental injury associated with traumatic combat experiences. We hope to support the veteran who may otherwise choose to end his/her life from the darkness of depression, solitude, and anxiety. We are currently supporting shelter dogs and veterans within Southern California and headquartered in San Diego. We hope to accommodate veteran applications nationwide in the near future.

Shelter to Soldier continues to seek relationships within our community that help to support our fields of impact. We have many relationships with local animal rescues and personal contacts that help to look for prospective dog rescues entering shelters that they believe posses the qualities of a potential psychiatric service dog. We also have close ties to the military community and many relationships with local VA clinics and hospitals in the San Diego and Los Angeles areas who continue to send referrals our way.

We work with a PR company that helps us to get our mission out to the Southern California area and beyond, and we have very influential individuals who believe in our mission throughout the Los Angeles and Santa Barbara areas who actively work to seek more funds for our program.

Our close group of corporate sponsors has supported us since our inception, and continues to grow every quarter. We work closely with our corporate sponsors to promote their charitable giving and their active role in the rescue, training, placement and graduation process of their sponsored dogs through our program, providing comarketing strategies and PR to highlight their involvement. The corporations and companies that support our mission rave about our impact as well as our commitment to acknowledging their contributions to our network and the public.

The inquiries from veterans in need never stop, and unfortunately, we aren't able to help every veteran who applies to our program. Thousands of dogs enter shelters every day, and need the support of organizations like ours to provide them a career change from abandoned stray or owner surrender to a loved, highly trained, working service dog is tremendous.

With a combined 45 years of dog training experience, and specialists in service dog training, our team is truly unmatched in the field. This project is designed to train a potentially behaviorally challenged rescue dog into a level 1 psychiatric service dog in the span of 9-18 months. Although we evaluate the shelter dogs at a very high level to determine their potential as a service dog, every dog we rescue is an individual, with unique needs and challenges to work through. We tailor the training program to each dog to build them up to a successful career change from abandoned rescue to psychiatric service dog and lifelong companion. The task is not an easy one, but our team has successfully transformed the lives of these dogs to become the support system that our veterans need to participate in society again and even more, to thrive.

Our Founder and President, Graham Bloem, is a sought after public speaker and our local news and radio outlets love interviewing him and sharing our mission. His expertise in dog training and PR has helped our organization grow to what it is today. Alongside our PR firm, EMS Marketing Consulting and Eva Stimson, we have shared our mission and success stories with our community and continue to receive the support we need to grow. Nicky Moore, Director of Operations, maintains an elite standard of care for all service and emotional support dogs in our program and works alongside our Department of Veteran Services to welcome new veteran students, support active students and provide lifelong support to graduates of the program. Kyrié Bloem, Shelter to Soldier Cofounder and Vice President maintains quality standards for our program, serves as our grant writer and event coordinator, and creates and maintains our relationships with community partners and future donors. Our CoFounder and Treasurer, Krys Holc, has a highly successful accounting firm and she manages our financials with excruciating detail to allow or organization to be as transparent as possible for our potential contributors. With a specialty in non-profit accounting, her expertise helps us to stay on track with our financial goals and growth. The Shelter to Soldier Board of Directors provides oversight for all departments, fundraising efforts and community relations.

To date, Shelter to Soldier has placed However, with growth, we need more hands-on support for our organizational needs. Our Red Star Sponsorship is $15,000 and only meets the financial needs of the service dog training program with no room to spare for other expenses. We need a team to help us grow and manage the day to day inquiries, sponsorships, volunteers, events, grant applications, donations and more. We have not built a large enough team to handle all of the inquiries and opportunities we receive every day, though we have an incredible team that makes our service dog program the success it is today.