The Mission Continues

The Mission Continues is a 501(c)(3) national nonprofit organization that aims to empower military veterans to apply their skills and leadership abilities to benefit under-resourced communities. Established with the recognition that veterans possess a unique drive and dedication to serve, the organization seeks to harness these qualities to foster community development and support. By providing veterans with the tools and opportunities to continue their service beyond the military, the organization addresses the dual challenges of veteran reintegration and community underdevelopment.

Mission, Vision and Core Values
The mission of The Mission Continues is to connect veterans with under-resourced communities, deploying veteran volunteers to collaborate with nonprofit partners and community leaders. The focus is on improving educational resources, addressing food insecurity, fostering neighborhood identity, and undertaking various community projects.

The vision is for every veteran with a desire to continue their service to become part of a transformative movement within communities, thereby catalyzing positive change and development.

The organization is grounded in five core values that guide its operations and interactions:


 * Collaboration: Emphasizing the importance of partnership, power sharing, and mutual support to achieve the mission.
 * Compassion: Demonstrating genuine concern and action towards the challenges faced by others, marked by care, humility, and respect.
 * Inclusiveness: Encouraging diverse perspectives and contributions, recognizing that varied voices lead to more effective leadership and outcomes.
 * Integrity: Upholding commitments, acknowledging contributions, and maintaining ethical standards in all actions and decisions.
 * We Grow Through Learning: Committing to continuous improvement, innovation, and personal and professional development to ensure lasting impact.

Service Platoon Program
The Service Platoon Model is a cornerstone of The Mission Continues' approach to community service and veteran engagement. These platoons are led by volunteers who are veterans; who coordinate efforts with community partners to execute impactful projects tailored to local needs. From revitalizing community gardens and painting educational murals to enhancing public parks, service platoons mobilize a diverse group of volunteers, including families and non-veterans, to make tangible improvements in medium-to-large sized cities nationwide. The model fosters a sense of camaraderie and purpose reminiscent of military service, encouraging veterans to utilize their leadership skills and commitment to service in civilian life. Platoon Leaders play a crucial role, embodying strong communication, organizational, and motivational skills to guide their teams in supporting community initiatives. As of March 2023, there are over 40 service platoons active in over 40 cities.

Annual Mass Deployment
Mass Deployments mobilize veterans from across the country alongside local partners and volunteers in a single city for a week of learning, teamwork, and community impact. Beyond the immediate benefits to the host city, the Mass Deployment serves as a powerful platform for leadership development and networking among veterans. Since its inception in 2016, the program has brought transformative change to cities like Detroit, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and now looks towards San Antonio, TX, for its eighth iteration. This initiative highlights The Mission Continues' commitment to sustainable community impact and the empowerment of veterans as civic leaders. Mass Deployment, an event that brings together veterans from across the country for a week of high-impact service projects in one community, The latest Mass Deployment, known as Operation Military City Salute for the year 2024, is an ambitious week-long initiative aimed at transforming a selected city through concentrated volunteer efforts. Gathering hundreds of veterans and volunteers from across the country, this event focuses on executing high-impact projects that address critical needs within the community, ranging from infrastructure improvements to beautification efforts. Every year, a new Mass Deployment city is selected with a goal of jump-starting long-term transformational change, having served in Detroit, Atlanta's Westside, the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, and South Baltimore.

Service Leadership Corps
The Service Leadership Corps is a six-month, community-based leadership program that combines in-person and online learning with real-world applications. The goal is to equip program participants with relevant skills to serve as a community leader. Starting in 2020, the program has two tracks, the traditional one continues to meet in person while the new virtual track offers remote learning for a more flexible participation experience.

Women Veterans Leadership Program
In April 2016, The Mission Continues launched the first Women Veterans Leadership Summit in New Orleans and due to its success, it was pivoted towards a full-fledged program, the organization launched the Women Veterans Leadership Program. This program brings together a cohort of women veterans from all eras for a five-month program, designed to support women by identifying their unique leadership pathways, strengthening their existing leadership skills, and creating a nationwide network of like-minded women.

Awards
The organization has been named one of the 50 Best Nonprofits to Work For in 2012, 2013 and 2014 by The NonProfit Times, a "Best Place to Work" from Outside in 2013 and 2014,  the 2011 Innovation Award Winner from the Social Venture Network, the 2012 TORCH Award from the Better Business Bureau of Eastern Missouri and Southern Illinois, a 2009 Draper Richards Fellowship from the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation and the 2011 Best of Bullseye Award for Collaboration from Target.

History
Formerly Center for Citizen Leadership, the organization was founded in 2007 by Republican politician Eric Greitens. Greitens returned home from service in Iraq as a Navy SEAL. Upon his return, Eric visited with wounded Marines at Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland. Many Marines expressed a desire to continue serving their country, even if they could no longer do so in the military. Inspired, Greitens founded The Mission Continues. As of May 2014, The Mission Continues had awarded more than 1,000 fellowships since it began operations. Mary Beth Bruggeman is the current President.

Political controversy
Eric Greitens stepped down as CEO in July 2014 to pursue political aspirations in Missouri; Greitens was accused of improperly taking The Mission Continues list of donors and his campaign was fined in 2015. On April 20, 2018, Greitens was charged with felony computer data tampering, related to the same incident. The charges were later dropped.