FACT SHEET
For 38 years, the Air Force Enlisted Village has provided a safe haven for widows. Low pay and frequent military moves leave some women without careers, home equities, outside retirement plans or other significant assets. Many are left without survivor benefits and don’t qualify for Social Security until they’re 62. These women can live here among their peers without the stigma normally associated with subsidized housing.
When you designate your Air Force Assistance Fund dollars to the Air Force Enlisted Village Indigent Widow’s Fund, you can be assured 100% of your donation goes toward rent subsidy for enlisted Air Force widows in need of financial assistance. In 2004, this equaled $730,000 – approximately 11 percent of the total AFAF donations.
The Village also has a long-standing policy of offering temporary housing and services to spouses and children of enlisted members who die, or who are killed, on active duty.
Adult dependents (typically mothers of active duty members or spouses) are eligible for housing on a space-available basis, as are enlisted widows of other branches of the military. And we’re always there for active duty and retired families during times of natural disaster.
STATISTICS:
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The Air Force is the only military service that supports retirement communities exclusively for the widows of career enlisted members
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Two independent living locations – Bob Hope Village in Shalimar and Teresa Village in Fort Walton Beach
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365 apartments
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No waiting period in some cases
FUNDING:
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Charitable, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization
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Receives no Federal, State, Medicare or Medicaid funding
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No monies from mandatory 50-cent payroll deduction (This money goes to the Armed Forces Retirement Homes in Gulfport, MS and Washington, D.C.)
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Contributions from individuals and groups
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Discretionary (Type D) Allotment Program, open to both active duty and retired military members
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Buy A Brick Paver Program
By designating your cash, check or allotment to the Air Force Enlisted Village Indigent Widow’s Fund in this year’s campaign, you help ensure the continued support of those members of the military – the Air Force enlisted widows – who have given so much to our country through their unwavering support of our military members, both past and present.