Soldier Strong Inc
Helping servicemembers take their next steps forward.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The SoldierSuit is several state-of-the-art rehabilitation technologies that address a variety of combat-related disabilities. We partner with some of the country’s most advanced medical technology firms to make their products accessible to our returning veterans. The SoldierScholarship program represents our commitment to provide support for our United States Armed Forces heroes that evolves along with their needs. As soldiers return from service abroad, education offers some of the best opportunities for them to provide for themselves and their families, and thrive in civilian life. StrongMind was launched to reduce the number of veteran suicides, and provide veterans with urgently needed options for PTSD treatment, SoldierStrong is partnering with the Veterans Administration to offer StrongMind, a revolutionary virtual reality therapy program that leverages cutting-edge technology to make therapy not only as effective as possible but also more appealing to younger generations.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
SoldierSuit
The SoldierStrong SoldierSuit is actually several state-of-the-art rehabilitation technologies that address a variety of combat-related disabilities. We partner with some of the country’s most advanced medical technology firms to make their products accessible to our returning veterans. Used together or on their own, the SoldierSuit components help their recipients live fulfilling, empowered lives long after their service to our country is over. SoldierStrong is constantly partnering with new firms to tackle new ailments and expand SoldierSuit’s ability to transform lives. Through our efforts, SoldierStrong not only helps those who most deserve it, but also creates additional benefits for the entire country. Our partners don’t just change lives; they create jobs and strengthen their communities. With the support of SoldierStrong and similar organizations, our partners continue to push the possibilities of technology forward and keep the United States at the cutting edge.
SoldierScholarship
SoldierStrong’s SoldierScholarship program represents our commitment to provide support for our military heroes that evolves along with their needs. As soldiers return from service abroad, education offers some of the best opportunities for them to provide for themselves and their families, and thrive in civilian life.
The SoldierScholarship program is open to all veterans who defended our nation’s freedom and fought in the recent War on Terror (Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn). Our mission is helping soldiers take their next steps forward in their academic and professional careers and to fill any tuition gaps the Post-9/11 GI Bill may leave.
SoldierRecovery
SoldierStrong is dedicated to helping American military veterans overcome disabilities and major injuries through therapy and rehabilitation. Help us help our Nation’s veterans by donating today.
StrongMind
StrongMind is dedicated to providing urgently needed help for veterans with PTSD. Revolutionary virtual reality (VR) therapy offered through VA clinics makes treatment not only as effective as possible but also more appealing to younger generations.
Where we work
External reviews

Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of students enrolled
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Veterans
Related Program
SoldierScholarship
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
As soldiers return from service abroad, education offers some of the best opportunities for them to provide for themselves and their families, and thrive in civilian life.
Number of people provided assistive technology
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Veterans, People with physical disabilities
Related Program
SoldierSuit
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
We partner with some of the country’s most advanced medical technology firms to make their products accessible to our returning veterans.
Number of people who receive inpatient care and get significantly better
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Veterans, People with physical disabilities
Related Program
SoldierSuit
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of new clients within the past 12 months
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Veterans, People with physical disabilities
Related Program
SoldierSuit
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of therapy hours provided to clients
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Veterans, People with physical disabilities
Related Program
SoldierSuit
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
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?
SoldierStrong helps American patriots literally take their new steps forward. Through educational scholarships and by harnessing the most innovative technology in advanced rehabilitation, we help our returning service men and women to continue moving in the only direction they should know – forward. Nearly every dollar SoldierStrong receives goes towards direct support of American patriots so that they can re-acclimate to civilian life. Our organization works to remind those men and women who sacrificed so much that we are forever thankful.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
SoldierStrong is committed to helping our soldiers take their next steps forward. Whether it be a soldier taking their next steps on the frontlines, in their education or career paths, or helping them get out of a wheelchair and take the next steps forward in their daily lives, SoldierStrong is there to support them. We partner with some of the nation's most advanced biomedical device companies to get their products into the hands of our nation's injured veterans. Through our efforts, SoldierStrong not only helps those who most deserve it, but also creates additional benefits for the entire country. These firms don't just change lives; they create jobs and strengthen their communities. With the support of SoldierStrong and similar organizations, our partners continue to push technology forward and keep the United States at the cutting edge.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Small goods. Large impact. From this simple ethos, SoldierSocks began its journey of helping service men and women through theirs. Along the way, we've developed into an organization with a national profile that now stands at the forefront of non-profits dedicated to improving the lives of our nation's heroes.
Back in 2009, we saw that soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan lacked some basic essentials – namely tube socks and baby wipes, cherished items in the harsh deserts of the Middle East. Moved to take action, we founded SoldierStrong and,working with local businesses and civic organizations around Stamford, Conn., held sock drives and fund-raising events. Word of our mission spread, and our partnerships grew in scope to include organizations such as Cablevision, Sports Illustrated, ConAir and Newman's Own, in addition to a number of schools and universities, churches and other civic organizations.
People took notice – SoldierStrong shipped over 50,000 pounds of items to our troops abroad, and drew praise here at home, receiving a commendation from the U.S. House of Representatives and a Presidential Call to Service Award from the White House.
As the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq wound down and our ambitions to help grew, SoldierStrong's focus pivoted from providing goods to soldiers abroad to helping them thrive here at home. Our efforts quickly evolved beyond simple sock drives to scholarships for returning veterans and partnering with cutting-edge rehabilitation technology companies to literally get our heroes “back on their feet".
Although we've since left sock drives and care packages behind to tackle new challenges, SoldierStrong remains committed to its founding principles: providing our patriots with the resources and support they need to overcome obstacles new and old. While the goods that we now provide – state-of-the-art medical devices and educational opportunities at some of our nation's most prestigious institutions – are in no way small, our impact continues to be outsized.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
- Donation dollars passed on to our causes: 80+%
- Bio Medical devices funded or donated this year: 4
- Spinal Cord Injured veterans now with access to our SoldierSuit: 30,000
- Scholarship dollars granted to date through 2021: $500,000+
- Collaborating with the VA's Innovator Network to deploy the BraveMind VR/PTSD protocol to an initial 10 VA medical centers
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
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.
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.
Soldier Strong Inc
Board of directorsas of 08/29/2023
Christopher Meek
Christopher Meek
SoldierStrong
Jeremy Wien
SoldierStrong
William Colfer, III
SoldierStrong
Leora Levy
SoldierStrong
Tyler McAllister
SoldierStrong
Darlene Rosenkoetter
SoldierStrong
Kimberly Moros
SoldierStrong
Michele Merrell
SoldierStrong
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? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
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? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No -
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
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 07/04/2020GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.