• What are the eligibility requirements for a grant?
  • The child/teen is age 1-18 or not yet a high school graduate and is the child or dependent of the qualifying service member or Veteran
  • Deployed National Guard or Reserve: Kids with a parent or guardian deployed overseas or activated stateside (not including AGR assignments or training) with the National Guard or Reserve for at least 60 days
  • Combat-Injured Veterans & service members: Kids with a parent or guardian of any branch of service who is receiving care for illnesses or injuries sustained during a post-9/11 overseas contingency operation. Veterans must have an individual (not combined) VA disability rating of 30% or more in one of the following categories: TBI, PTSD, amputation, spinal cord injury, burns, mental health, or one of the presumptive conditions outlined in the PACT Act. Service members must be on medical orders.
  • You are able to provide all required documentation, as listed in the corresponding program descriptions above and the online applications linked above. For the Combat Injured Program, a letter from a VA case manager or medical provider certifying the Veteran/service member meets all the criteria for our program and is still receiving treatment is required. You can use our case manager letter template linked HERE.

• How will the grant payment be received?
  • Once approved, a “Top Secret” grant award packet will be sent to your home address. This packet includes special recognition for the child, as well as the grant check, which is made payable to the activity provider. You may then hand-deliver the check to the activity provider. If you made an early payment to reserve your child’s spot, you may then request reimbursement.

• What is the maximum grant award my child can receive?
  • Each grant check is $300 per child per activity/provider.
  • For deployed National Guard and Reserve, an additional $300 activity grant per child is available for deployments or activations of 180+ days, making the total benefit $600. Applications for these second grants may be submitted anytime during the deployment and at the same time as the first grant!
  • For combat-injured Veterans and service members, a total of five $300 grants are available: four regular grants per child (one every six months) plus an additional FLEX grant that can be applied for at any time.
  • Subsequent grants may be used for the same or different activities.

• Can a grant pay for academic tuition, religious trips, or child care?
  • No; we only fund extracurricular activities such as fine arts, tutoring, sports, camp, and driver’s education.

• Are children of active component service members eligible for a grant?
  • Not under our Deployed Program. This program currently focuses on serving National Guard and Reserve families who often live away from military communities and leave behind civilian jobs when they deploy or are activated.
  • Under our Combat Injured Program, active duty service members may be eligible if they are receiving care for a post-9/11, combat related injury or illness and are on medical orders.

• Can a grant check be made payable to a family member?
  • No, for security reasons, we only approve grant payments to non-family members.

• How soon can I apply for another grant?
  • For deployed National Guard and Reserve service members deployed or activated for 180+ days, you may apply for two (2) grants per child, per deployment. Each $300 grant requires its own application.
  • For our Combat-Injured Program, you may apply for one (1) regular grant per child every six (6) months for a total of four (4) regular grants. We also offer an additional fifth (5th) FLEX grant available at any time during the military parent’s care.

Any other questions? Please reach out to us at: apply@ourmilitarykids.org