Coming Home Is Just the Beginning

For many veterans, the hardest part of service isn't the deployment, it's what comes after.

A Sobering Picture

The VA's 2025 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report found the veteran suicide rate climbed again in the most recent data available, to 37.8 per 100,000 for men and 13.9 per 100,000 for women. On average, 17.5 veterans died by suicide every day. The risk isn't evenly spread either: veterans aged 18 to 34 in lower-income priority groups face the highest rate of any group tracked, 85.4 per 100,000.

Perhaps the most telling number: 61% of veterans who died by suicide in 2023 had not received VA health care in the year before their death. The people at greatest risk are often the ones furthest from support.

Where the System Is Working

There's real progress too. In fiscal year 2025, the Veterans Crisis Line fielded 1.3 million calls, chats, and texts, a 39% increase over the prior year, with a 97% satisfaction rate among veterans who used it. Community-based grant programs are also expanding, funding local organizations across 46 states to reach veterans and families where they live.

Why Community Organizations Matter

National systems can't reach everyone, and that's where local, community-driven support fills the gap, especially for veterans who've disengaged from formal care entirely. Honored 25 was founded to be exactly that kind of bridge: direct assistance and mental health resources for veterans and military families, delivered by people who understand what coming home actually looks like.

Sources: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, "2025 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report," Parts 1 and 2.