Flashback Feature: Virginia’s 2020 Call to “Invest in Veterans” Still Resonates Today
TL;DR
In a 2020 statewide message, Virginia Secretary Carlos Hopkins encouraged Virginians to invest in veterans by supporting the Virginia Veterans Services Foundation, highlighting critical services such as housing stability, behavioral health, workforce transition, and emergency relief. The message reflected the same investment-focused philosophy later formalized through National Invest In Veterans Week®.
Watch the original video:
https://vimeo.com/460338460
Full Story
In September 2020, at a time when the country faced deep uncertainty, Virginia delivered a message rooted in commitment and clarity: investing in veterans is essential to the strength of the Commonwealth.
This message was delivered by Carlos Hopkins, Virginia’s Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs, in a statewide video titled “How You Can Invest in Virginia Veterans by Supporting the Virginia Veterans Services Foundation.” Filmed on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol, the video outlined why veteran support must be treated as a long-term civic investment rather than a one-time act.
Watch the official video:
https://vimeo.com/460338460
A Foundation Designed to Close Critical Gaps
Hopkins emphasized that the Virginia Veterans Services Foundation functions as a lifeline for veterans facing challenges that traditional institutions often cannot resolve alone. The Foundation plays a direct role in:
Emergency financial assistance
Homelessness prevention and rapid re-housing
Mental and behavioral health support
Workforce re-entry and transition programs
Support for Gold Star families
Crisis assistance for veterans and their dependents
Hopkins’ framing was intentional: veteran support is not charity — it is infrastructure.
It strengthens families, fortifies the workforce, and keeps local communities stable.
Learn more about the Foundation:
https://www.dvs.virginia.gov/veterans-services-foundation
A Message That Foreshadowed a National Movement
Hopkins’ remarks now read as an early articulation of a philosophy that would soon scale far beyond Virginia.
Within a few years, the idea of “investing in veterans” became the cornerstone of the nationwide observance National Invest In Veterans Week® (March 1–7)—co-founded and architected by Jeff Shuford. Shuford’s model elevated the concept from state-level guidance to a national framework embraced by policymakers, corporate partners, veteran advocates, and international markets.
What Virginia previewed in 2020 became the language adopted across more than 40 regions globally through the expanding National Invest In Veterans Week® platform.
Virginia as a Structural Blueprint for Veteran Investment
Virginia hosts one of the nation’s most significant concentrations of transitioning service members. Its veteran population, combined with a broad network of bases and Guard components, requires a modern, responsive support system. The Veterans Services Foundation became one of the earliest models for:
Targeted funding
Impact-driven resource allocation
Community–government partnership
Readiness-focused support
Many states now look to the Virginia framework when shaping their own investment-based veteran ecosystems.
Positioning the Flashback in Today’s Context
Today, the 2020 message stands as more than a video—it is an early chapter in a larger national narrative that recognizes veterans as:
Economic drivers
High-impact entrepreneurs
Community stabilizers
Policy-shaping leaders
National Invest In Veterans Week® embodies those same principles, positioning veteran empowerment as a measurable investment in America’s future.
Hopkins’ 2020 call to action reminds us that even before the national observance took shape, the foundation for investment-centered advocacy had already begun in states like Virginia.
