How the Numerica Heroes Fund is helping veterans

A place to call home: How the Numerica Heroes Fund is making an impact

After 20 years serving in the U.S. Air Guard, one Spokane veteran found himself without something many people take for granted: a safe place to call home.

Today, he lives at Vets on Lacey in North Spokane, a supportive housing community owned and operated by Volunteers of America of Eastern Washington and designed specifically for previously homeless veterans. What was once uncertainty has become stability, independence, and the opportunity to focus on what comes next.

While every veteran’s experience is different, access to safe, affordable housing can provide an essential first step toward rebuilding routines, trust, and a sense of well-being.

“Veteran homelessness is still a real and urgent need in our community,” said Fawn Schott, CEO of Volunteers of America Eastern Washington. “Vets on Lacey was created to meet that need in a way that restores dignity and stability. When veterans have a safe place to live, it opens the door to healing, connection, and long-term success.”

Projects like Vets on Lacey are exactly the kind of community impact the Numerica Heroes Fund was created to support.

Turning commitment into action

The Numerica Heroes Fund is a $1 million, 10-year commitment to supporting veterans, active-duty service members, and their families. The fund was announced alongside the naming partnership of the Numerica Veterans Arena last fall.  

Alongside Spokane County Regional Veteran Services and the local Veterans Advisory Board, the partnership has identified the following funding priorities:  

• Veteran housing and homelessness prevention through expanded emergency shelter and transitional housing programs for veterans  
• Mental health and peer support through community outreach and clinics for military and veterans  
• Employment and financial stability programs including scholarships for career certifications and career and financial coaching services
• Veteran and family support services including counseling, youth resilience programs and support of Gold Star and survivor families  
• Legal aid and benefits navigation  
• Community events and awareness that positively engage and celebrate veteran and military families  

“These priorities ensure we’re investing in programs that meet real, pressing needs in our veteran community,” said Cat Nichols, director of Spokane County Regional Veteran Services. “We’re honored to guide this investment, so it creates genuine, positive, lasting impact for local veterans and their families. These investments are being made for veterans by veterans. "  

Building Community at Vets on Lacey

At Vets on Lacey, those priorities come to life.

With half of the housing units now occupied, the development is becoming a place where veterans can build stability, independence, and community at their own pace.

Shared spaces like the central courtyard — funded by a $50,000 grant from the Numerica Heroes Fund — offer opportunities for connection, reflection, and community while respecting the unique experiences each resident brings with them.

For many residents, permanent housing provides something essential: the ability to focus on the future.

Like many people transitioning into stable housing, adjustment takes time. For this resident, having a place of his own has created the space to settle in at his own pace and begin focusing on what future he will create for himself. 

Looking Ahead

Additional Heroes Fund investments are currently being identified, with more announcements planned ahead of Veterans Day later this year.

For Numerica, this work is about more than a single moment – it’s about long-term commitment.

And for veterans finding stability at places like Vets on Lacey, it represents something even more meaningful: the opportunity to move forward, build community, and have a place to call home.