Swords to Plowshares Just Added 124 Veteran Homes. Here's What Fills Them.

San Francisco's largest provider of veteran housing runs on wraparound support. Here's how item-level giving with photo proof helps stock a home a veteran can actually live in.

Swords to Plowshares is a verified nonprofit partner on Givelink, a transparent giving platform connecting donors to verified U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofits with photo proof of delivery. The organization is having a landmark year, and it points to a specific, tangible way people can help.

Key Takeaways

• On July 1, 2026, Swords to Plowshares announced 124 new permanent supportive homes for veterans at 1035 Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco.
• It's San Francisco's largest provider of affordable housing for veterans, founded by Vietnam veterans in 1974.
• It supports roughly 3,000 veterans a year, with 86% of every dollar going directly to client services (their figure).
• A new home needs to be filled: bedding, towels, kitchen basics, and household essentials.
• A Givelink socks drive drew strong donor response, gathering around $1,000, with delivery photos live on the platform.

A landmark year, and a tangible need

On July 1, 2026, Swords to Plowshares announced the rehabilitation of 1035 Van Ness Avenue into 124 permanent supportive homes for veterans experiencing or at risk of homelessness, supported in part by a $750,000 grant from The Home Depot Foundation. The $44 million project strengthens the organization's position as San Francisco's largest provider of affordable housing for veterans.

The context matters. As executive director Tramecia Garner put it, stable housing unlocks a veteran's ability to reconnect with community, invest in wellbeing, and regain a sense of dignity. The typical housing resident at Swords to Plowshares is over 55, living on less than $1,200 a month, and managing one or more service-related health conditions.

Here's the part where individual donors come in. Getting a veteran indoors is the milestone. But a set of keys and an empty room is not yet a home. Every unit that comes online needs to be filled with the basics of daily life, and that's a need item-level giving is built for.

What veteran housing actually needs

Founded in 1974, Swords to Plowshares provides wraparound support: housing, income, healthcare, employment, meals, and community. Across veteran housing and transitional programs, the consistently useful donations are the household fundamentals that turn a unit into a livable home:

Bedding and linens — sheets, blankets, and pillows for a new unit.

Towels and bath basics — the first things a person needs after moving in.

Kitchen essentials — cookware, utensils, and basic tableware.

Hygiene supplies — the everyday items that dignity depends on.

Household basics — cleaning supplies and small comforts that make a space feel lived-in.

The organization's own holiday tradition underscores the point: its annual gift backpacks provide veterans with essentials to survive the winter months. Practical, specific, and immediately useful, that's the shape of what helps.

How Givelink fits

For donors who want their support to be concrete, Givelink offers item-level giving with proof. You pick the specific household items a veteran's new home needs, they ship new from verified U.S. suppliers, and when they arrive, staff photographs the delivery. That photo, plus an auto-generated tax receipt, reaches your dashboard. Deliveries are typically batched and arrive within 4 to 21 days. Charity Navigator data appears directly on rated nonprofit profiles.

A real example: a socks drive that landed

Socks are one of the most-needed and least-donated items across housing and outreach programs. When Swords to Plowshares ran a socks drive on Givelink, the donor response was strong, gathering around $1,000 toward the need. Every pair was purchased new, shipped to the organization, and photographed on arrival. Those delivery photos are live on the platform.

It's a small illustration of a bigger point: give people a specific, tangible need and a way to see it met, and they show up.

Givelink in action

Swords to Plowshares is a verified U.S. nonprofit partner on Givelink, with Charity Navigator data on its profile. Donors browse the wishlist, pick the household items a veteran's home needs, and receive photo proof of delivery. Browse verified veterans nonprofits on Givelink and help fill a home.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Swords to Plowshares do?

Founded in 1974 by Vietnam veterans, it's a San Francisco Bay Area 501(c)(3) (EIN 94-2260626) providing wraparound support to roughly 3,000 veterans a year: housing, income, healthcare, employment, meals, and community. It's the city's largest provider of affordable veteran housing.

How can I help veterans through Swords to Plowshares?

You can give financially, or through Givelink you can give specific household items that stock veteran housing, and receive photo proof of delivery.

Are donations tax-deductible?

Yes. Swords to Plowshares is a registered 501(c)(3). Donations through Givelink generate an IRS-compliant receipt after delivery.

What do veteran housing programs need most?

Bedding, towels, kitchen essentials, hygiene supplies, and household basics that turn a new unit into a livable home. Specific needs are shown on the organization's Givelink wishlist.

Support Swords to Plowshares on Givelink and see your donation arrive.

Stay Human.

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Antonis Politis is CEO and Co-Founder of Givelink.