BNSF provides grant to Invictus Foundation for military behavioral health program

The Invictus Foundation late last month announced it received a grant from BNSF Railway Co. to expand its Welcome Home Network™ program and services for military members.

A national nonprofit organization that provides health counseling services to the military, the foundation offers the Welcome Home Network to make volunteer behavioral health professionals available to active duty service members, National Guard and Reserve forces, Iraq and Afghanistan conflict veterans, and those who have separated or are retired from any military service branch.

"BNSF Railway awarded the grant to support the ongoing efforts to scale the Welcome Home Network regionally and nationally, and to assist the Invictus Foundation in continuing to develop its public awareness campaign addressing military behavioral health issues," said BNSF Director of Public Affairs Gus Melonas in a press release. "BNSF values the team work experience that military personnel provide and as a result, [we are] a major employer of veterans and will continually add their experience to our workforce in the future."

The BNSF grant will enable the Invictus Foundation to continue raising awareness about the psychological impacts of war, said Peter Whalen, the foundation's founder and chief executive officer.

"This grant will help us continue our work to normalize what our military members, veterans and their families are experiencing, and support the sacrifices that they are making by providing critical and confidential behavioral health support on a sliding fee schedule that includes no cost," he said.