DAV Charitable Service Trust Grant to Aid A-State’s Beck PRIDE Center Veterans
JONESBORO — Arkansas State University’s Beck PRIDE Center for America’s Wounded Veterans has been awarded a grant for $60,000 by the DAV Charitable Service Trust. The grant will provide counseling, advocacy and educational programming for veterans at Arkansas State.
Dr. Susan Hanrahan, dean of the College of Nursing and Health Professions, was notified of the funding by the chairman of the Charitable Service Trust Richard E. Marbes.
“We are so appreciative of the support of the DAV Charitable Services Trust,” Hanrahan said. “This gift will provide an opportunity to extend our work with the student veterans and their families especially in the areas of psychoeducational programming, tutoring and counseling. Beck PRIDE services to date have impacted over 500 student veterans and their families. The DAV is making such a difference in the lives of veterans nationwide.”
The charitable service trust is a nonprofit charitable organization that relies upon contributions from the American public to support the grants. The DAV Charitable Service Trust was established in 1986 by the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) national organization to advance initiatives that might not fit easily into the scheme of what is traditionally offered through the Department of Veteran Affairs, state veterans’ programs or veterans’ service organizations.
“This is exactly the kind of program that the trust is designed to support,” said Marbes. “Programs at the local level perform an incredibly important function for veterans, and I know Beck PRIDE will continue providing veterans the opportunity to heal as they work toward building successful civilian lives.”
The sole mission of the charitable trust fund is to ensure veterans get all of the care, rehabilitation and services needed when they suffer the often-severe physical and mental effects of military service. The organization is dedicated to enabling veterans to transition back into civilian life to lead quality lives with dignity and respect.
The Beck PRIDE Center for America’s Wounded Veterans was conceived, conceptualized and funded by the Buddy G. and Charlotte Beck family of Fairfax Station, Va., and opened on the A-State campus in 2007. Housed in the Donald W. Reynolds Center, the program is a part of the College of Nursing and Health Professions. The word PRIDE is an acronym for “Personal Rehabilitation, Individual Development and Education.”
The program’s mission is to provide combat-wounded veterans with first-class educational programs and services at Arkansas State University. These include, but are not limited to, resources to access to the higher education experience, resources for counseling, personal rehabilitation, advocacy, and financial assistance and supporting these individuals to achieve their post-military service goals.
The center at Arkansas State is the recipient of various honors including the Newman’s Own/Fisher House award as one of the top 10-U.S. non-profit organizations providing innovative service to American military families, high rankings in Military Times’ “Best for Vets at U.S. Colleges,” listing as one of the “Top 100 Military Friendly Education Institutions” for the years 2009-14.
