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U.S. VETS (2025) Print
2025 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Digital Connections
└ Digital navigation skills
└ Digital navigation skills
U.S. VETS expanded its Career Center to reach older veterans and other residents who struggle to translate skills, use online tools and navigate language barriers. The team purchased computers for public use, offered workshops on networking profiles, online certifications and skills translation. They provided bus passes and kept classes running at the current site. It promoted the effort at career events, organized a clothing drive and planned employer-led mock interviews as partnerships are finalized. As building is being finalized, services continue, expanding outreach and positioning older adults to access training, devices and employer connections when doors open.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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Christiansburg, VA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Digital navigation skills
Description: Older adults in rural Virginia faced isolation during the pandemic, lacking internet access and basic computer skills. To close this gap, the group launched a Mobile Literacy Lab stocked with laptops, hotspots and other tools to deliver classes and tutoring. Two 10-week courses and five workshops taught email basics, safe browsing and virtual meeting skills. The lab now enables older adults to manage tasks like job searches and online communication. "This one hour class helped me more than anyone else in months," said Ellen, who learned to secure her email accounts. With new partnerships and a waiting list for future classes, the lab is set to remain a cornerstone for inclusive learning.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Eureka, MT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Digital navigation skills
Description: Older adults and veterans in a remote Montana community will receive easy-to-use tablets and in-person telehealth training. The project will help residents meet with medical providers online rather than travel long distances.
Waynesboro, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Digital navigation skills
Description: Older adults in rural Wayne County faced isolation and limited digital skills, making it hard to access online services or stay connected with family. The library offered free weekly computer classes and provided simplified tablets for home use, teaching email, internet basics and video calling. Participants practiced during sessions and at home to reinforce skills. They expressed excitement about learning and confidence in using devices for everyday tasks, showing how the program reduced isolation and improved digital access in a community with few resources.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Kapolei and 'Ewa, HI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020
Project Category: Roadway/sidewalks/crosswalk improvement
Description: New curb extensions on Kopolei's Papipi Road not only help local children safely navigate their route to school, they also remind passersby of their rich Hawaiian history and culture. Over the past five years, daily traffic on the road increased 50 percent, with many drivers exceeding the posted speed limit. To calm traffic, Hawaii's Blue Zones Project installed bulb outs at an intersection, which safely extend the sidewalk into the street. This shortens the street crossing distance for pedestrians and makes them more visible to drivers. To make the curb extensions even more noticeable, volunteers used paint to depict limu in shades of gold and green on the pavement. Limu are edible, underwater plants -- a vital component of Hawaiian cuisine and ceremonies for generations.
Pearl City, HI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: An overgrown lot at Pearl City High School left older adults without a welcoming place to gather. Volunteers cleared one acre and built "The Haven" with raised beds, tropical orchards, a pumpkin patch, picnic areas and a deck for classes. Festivals, workdays and workshops co-led by students and older adults turned the space into a hub for connection and learning. The school created a coordinator role to sustain the garden, and partnerships are advancing solar-powered irrigation and plans for outdoor classrooms and specialized gardens. The project will help spur long-term benefits to the community.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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