Behind much of the support a Veteran receives is a person who had to learn how to have a critical conversation. Sometimes that person answers calls at the Veterans Crisis Line. Sometimes it is another Veteran, a family member, or a volunteer at a VSO. In each case the conversation matters, and outside of a crisis line, the person having it has usually had little chance to practice before that important moment.
Helping Veterans support each other
The VA’s latest annual report, released in September, counted 6,488 Veteran suicides in 2024, an average of 17.7 a day. When a Veteran is struggling, the person they talk to first is often another Veteran, and most Veterans who want to help have never been trained to have that conversation. In our survey, 92% of Veterans said they wanted to support a fellow Veteran who was struggling, but only 25% felt prepared to.
HomeTeam is a free online program built for that situation. It has four short modules, voiced by former service members and reviewed by clinicians, on communicating with empathy, talking about suicide, building a safety plan, and connecting a friend to resources. A chat simulation, powered by AI, lets you practice with a virtual fellow Veteran in a confidential, low-risk setting. More than 500 Veterans helped shape it. One of them told us he wanted to be that guy for his friends and didn’t know how.
We launched HomeTeam three years ago this week. It has over 2,000 users in all 50 states, and 93% of users report increased confidence in handling difficult mental health challenges. It is open to family members, friends, and loved ones as well as Veterans. Organizations that provide mental health support for Veterans have told us it has streamlined how they train their peer supporters.
This Veterans Day
I’m grateful to the Veterans who served our country, including close friends and relatives, and to the families who made their service possible. I’m thankful for the VA staff, who serve millions of our Veterans, for the countless VSOs that serve millions more, and for the crisis line teams that answer the call 24/7/365.
If you are worried about a Veteran, ask them directly whether they are thinking about suicide. Asking does not put the idea in their head.
If you are a Veteran, or you know one, you can start HomeTeam at hometeam.reflexai.com. It is completely free thanks to the support of Google.org, and the full program takes under two hours. If you lead a Veteran-serving organization, we can provide a partner code to streamline how your organization uses HomeTeam.
In a moment of Crisis
If you or a Veteran you know is in crisis, the Veterans Crisis Line is available 24/7: dial 988 and press 1, text 838255, or chat at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat.