National Veterans Homeless Support Scholarship in Honor of George Taylor Sr. for Veterans and Spouses
National Veterans Homeless Support (NVHS) is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 2008 by George Taylor Sr. and his friends who were passionate about helping homeless veterans in their community. They started by going out in the woods in Titusville to find homeless veterans, give them food and encourage them to enroll in the VA. Their mission soon evolved to eliminate homelessness among veterans in Central Florida by providing street outreach, housing assistance, and transitional housing facilities.
Since then, NVHS has made a remarkable impact on reducing veteran homelessness in Brevard County. According to the Bi-Annual Point in Time Count, the homeless veteran population has decreased from 1,800 in 2008 to less than 200 in 2023, an amazing 90% reduction! However, NVHS is not satisfied with this achievement and strives to reach mission complete by housing all the homeless veterans and preventing the at-risk veterans from losing their homes. According to the US Census Bureau, there are 4,700 veterans in Brevard County that are in poverty and need support.
What makes NVHS truly unique is the fact that they tackle homelessness directly where it exists…on the streets of their community. They proactively go out to find their clients through street level outreach where they live, provide basic needs to ensure their survival and build rapport, and connect them to any organization that offers a service beneficial to them, rapidly moving from homeless to housed.
NVHS is also committed to being fiscally responsible and transparent. They have a continuous Gold Star rating on GuideStar, and 4 of 4 Stars rating with Charity Navigator.
In 2020, NVHS lost its founder and president, George Taylor Sr., who dedicated his life to serving his fellow veterans. His son, George Taylor Jr., who had been the vice president of the organization since 2009, was appointed as the president and board chair by the board of directors. He continues to lead NVHS with the same vision and passion as his father.