Support The Enlisted Project

Few other jobs, if any, require greater risk, personal sacrifice, family disruption, emotional distress, time demands, and psychological impact than the job of a Coast Guardsman, Marine, a Sailor, an Airman, or a Soldier in today’s military.

In 2012, Support The Enlisted Project (STEP) started as an organization that wanted to support the most vulnerable in the military – young, junior enlisted service members who are asked to do dangerous, important jobs, with some of the lowest incomes in the country. They wanted to ensure everyone had their basic needs met in order to always be mission-ready.

Since then, STEP has evolved from supporting basic, urgent needs, to include working one-on-one with families to find their own path to financial selfsufficiency. They help navigate an imminent financial crisis, ensure no basic need is lost, while simultaneously work on an individualized plan for their overall financial well-being.

Founded by Veterans, STEP understands the demands of the job both on the service member, and their family. They know many getting into the military do not have financial literacy skills to navigate the low-pay and financial demands of the job: frequent moves without 100% reimbursements, high-cost-of-living areas, lack of childcare options, low spousal employment or under employed. The program is designed to set up these families for success, even when living paycheckto-paycheck. For the service member and Veteran to succeed, they must be ready for change and willing to make the sacrifices needed to prepare for the future, even when circumstances are outside their control.

In April, as the pandemic continued to shut down much of our world, a Marine family was struggling to pay rent when his wife was let go from her $15.50 hour job. Now rent was not the biggest concern but ensuring food on the table was. They came to STEP for help and a social worker, certified in financial counseling, worked with them to develop a plan they could survive on until she was able to find work again.

“We were pretty good with money. There wasn’t a lot of it, so we lived month-to-month with a small savings. When my wife lost her job that all changed, and I went to STEP for help. After paying two months of our rent and getting us groceries, we were able to breath and focus on what came next. And by February 2021 we’ll be able to start saving money again, even with my wife’s new part-time job. It’s a good feeling to be back in control.” – Marco, E4

STEP continued their Warehouse Distributions monthly throughout the year serving 21,373 individuals, 259,000 pounds of food and provided 120,930 diapers. They recognize challenges our military community faces, and were there to help them meet those needs with 18 distributions in San Diego, Oceanside, and Orange County. Through their partnership with the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank and community donors, STEP was able to provide families with two weeks’ worth of meals and other essentials to help offset the cost of critical needs.

With STEP’s proven record, they recognized the value in sustainably expanding the EFA program to address the needs of more military and Veteran families. After careful exploration, their Board voted to pilot an expansion of services throughout the State of Washington where the local military leadership unanimously welcomes STEP as a resource for their young families. In collaboration with Joint Base Louis McCord’s out-processing program, STEP is reaching 1,000 transitioning services members every quarter.

As a result of this critical expansion, STEP now serves 20% of the United States Military population, with 13% in Southern California and another 7% percent living on or near military bases in the State of Washington. Since expanding to the area, STEP has seen a steady increase in client cases in Washington, which now comprises 25% of clients served. STEP’s social workers continue to conduct remote counseling to maintain socially distanced services and the practice continues to prove successful for Washington-based clients.

“What we learned this year is that STEP’s EFA program, along with the community’s support, have been able to answer the call from those families with a critical need loss and also plant the seeds of prudent financial management along the way,” shared Tony Teravainen, CEO & C0-Founder of STEP and recipient of San Diego County’s Veteran of the Year award. “I am really proud of my team as they manage our clients needs and, I am always grateful for the generosity of our community.”

STEP is a privately funded, 4-Star Charity Navigator rated non-profit that serves all E1-E6 active duty and transitioning Veterans in Southern California. In January 2022 they will be formally expanding to serve the same population in Washington State. To learn how you can assist their programs through advocacy, volunteering or financial support, go to www.teamstepusa.org

STEP continued their Warehouse Distributions monthly throughout the year serving 21,373 individuals, 259,000 pounds of food and provided 120,930 diapers. They recognize challenges our military community faces, and were there to help them meet those needs with 18 distributions in San Diego, Oceanside, and Orange County. Through their partnership with the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank and community donors, STEP was able to provide families with two weeks’ worth of meals and other essentials to help offset the cost of critical needs.