Connecting Your Community Foundation with the Military Community

Supporting the military community begins with relationships. Many service members and their families live in your community, alongside veterans, retirees, National Guard and Reserve members, and military spouses. They are our neighbors, coworkers, volunteers, and community leaders.

The organizations supported by the Armed Forces Community Foundation (AFCF) serve the 11 counties surrounding Fort Riley. Their work reaches beyond the installation, supporting military-connected people in the communities where they live, work, and attend school. Your community foundation can help strengthen those connections.

Community foundations are well positioned to bring people together, understand local needs, and connect generosity with meaningful opportunities. Here are a few ways your foundation can engage:

• Start a conversation. Reach out to local veterans’ organizations, military families, schools, and community partners. Ask what is working well, where there are gaps, and how your foundation could help.
• Invite military voices to the table. Include veterans, service members, and military spouses on boards, committees, and in community discussions. Their experiences and skills can help shape your foundation’s priorities.
• Create opportunities to participate. Invite military-connected residents to volunteer, attend events, share their stories, and learn about your foundation. These connections can grow into lasting involvement.
• Connect donors with their interests. Help donors explore ways to support military-serving programs through existing funds, new funds, or legacy gifts.
• Recognize local impact. Share stories of military-connected people and organizations making a difference in your community. Recognition helps others see opportunities to get involved.

As part of the GMCF family, AFCF is a resource and partner in this work. Affiliates can help by introducing local partners, sharing community needs, and connecting people who want to support service members, veterans, and their families.

AFCF’s Stand To! Match Day, November 11–13, 2026, offers another opportunity to participate. Affiliates can share information with their communities and encourage support for participating military-serving nonprofits at StandToMatchDay.com.

You do not need to launch a new program to begin. One conversation, one invitation, or one introduction can open the door to a stronger relationship. Together, our community foundations can help military-connected residents feel welcome, valued, and involved in the communities they call home.