FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
San Diego, California (Dec. 19 2011) – REBOOT™, a three-week reverse boot camp workshop provided by the National Veterans Transition Services, Inc. (NVTSI) that helps veterans ease back into civilian life after service, has received a $100,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. The grant provides unrestricted operating support for the organization as it continues to expand programming.
San Diego is home to the nation’s largest number of veterans returning from wartime duty. Each year, about 28,000 veterans in San Diego leave the military – 200,000 nationwide. As the conflict in Iraq winds down and the military prepares to leave Afghanistan, the numbers of veterans leaving the service will increase. Statistics show that ex-military suffer from high jobless rates, higher rates of homelessness, substance abuse, and many other reintegration challenges. REBOOT™ gives San Diego’s veterans the tools to combat these challenges and succeed.
Currently the program is booked through April 2012 and there are an additional 350 service members on the waiting list. The Bank of America Foundation Funds will help shorten the wait especially for those service members who are part of the military’s drawdown that are being released earlier than expected.
“ National Veterans Transition Services is an outstanding San Diego-based nonprofit that helps our veterans transition from military to civilian life with careers in new and exciting directions,” said Rick Bregman, Bank of America San Diego Market President. “Bank of America not only provides grant dollars for the REBOOT Workshop, but also designed a customized financial education seminar with our Merrill Lynch colleagues who’ve volunteered to help them plan and manage their financial transition.”
NVTSI/REBOOT was launched by Retired Rear Admiral Ronne Froman and Retired Master Chief Petty Officer Maurice Wilson in July 2010, in response to the increasing number of former service members not adjusting to the “real world.” The primary concept of the program is to provide a “reverse boot camp” for veterans leaving the service to help them successfully reintegrate back into the civilian mode. To date, nearly 400 service men and women have benefited from this program and data suggests a high level of success of the program.
REBOOT Workshops™ are available free of charge for veterans, active duty personnel and spouses. The workshops are conducted at NVTSI headquarters in Mission Valley, 4141 Camino Del Rio South, and locations in north San Diego County.
Anyone interested in donating to the program or participating in the Hire Our Heroes program are encouraged to call (866) 535-7624 or visit www.rebootworkshop.org.
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