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ALTOONA -- Three Pennsylvania community organizations will share nearly $2 million in federal funding to expand suicide-prevention services for veterans.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs awarded $1.975 million through the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program. The Pennsylvania funding is part of $112 million awarded to 191 organizations nationwide.
The money will become available at the beginning of federal fiscal year 2027. Eligible recipients include nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, federally recognized tribes and other community organizations that have demonstrated an ability to serve veterans.
"Community organizations play a vital role in strengthening the support network available to Pennsylvania veterans," said David DiGiacomo, interim medical center director. "These grants provide veterans with lifesaving support and ensure they have access to the care and resources they deserve right here in our community."
The Fox grant program extends the VA's suicide-prevention efforts into communities, particularly to reach veterans who are not receiving VA health care.
According to the department, 61% of veterans who died by suicide in 2023 -- the latest year for which data are available -- had not received VA health care during the final year of their lives.
Approximately 17,000 veterans, service members and family members received assistance through Fox grant recipients during 2025, a 31% increase from 2024.
Grant-supported organizations connected 344 at-risk veterans with emergency mental health care during 2025. They also connected 2,647 veterans who had not previously used Veterans Health Administration services with VA care and resources -- nearly 1,000 more than in 2024.
The program is named for Staff Sgt. Parker Gordon Fox, an Army sniper instructor who died by suicide in 2020 at age 25. It supports community-based programs offering services such as suicide-risk screening, emergency treatment, case management, peer support, benefits assistance and help addressing housing, employment and other needs that can contribute to suicide risk.
The VA said suicide prevention remains its top clinical priority. VA health care facilities provide same-day emergency mental health care to veterans who need it, but reaching veterans who are not connected with the department remains a challenge.
During fiscal year 2026 through Sept. 20, the Veterans Crisis Line answered more than 1.3 million calls, texts and online chats, a 7.1% increase from the previous year. The VA also reported that nearly 50,000 veterans have used an emergency suicide-prevention benefit at VA and non-VA facilities since 2023.
More than 270,000 veterans enrolled in VA care during 2026, according to the department.
Veterans experiencing a crisis, and people concerned about a veteran, may call 988 and press 1, text 838255 or chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net. Assistance is free, confidential and available around the clock.
Additional information is available from Rachel Prichard at Rachel.Prichard@va.gov or (814) 943-8164, extension 14905.