About Us:
The Veterans Transition Center was originally founded by 33+ Year Veteran Tami Donaldson in Sept 2001 while Ms. Donaldson was serving in Iraq and Afghanistan in the Military.
The original VTC volunteer program was developed to assist transitioning Veterans with career planning services.
After returning from deployments with the military the VTC transition center was set up in Falcon, CO in May of 2013 at the Suri Ridge Coffee House, and various Veteran Claims and Benefit Support Services were offered.
In 2015, Tami moved the Suri-Ridge Coffee Shop to the Colorado Springs area right outside the north gate of Peterson Airforce base. From 2015-2016 VSS was operated from the coffee shop.
New Partnership:
In 2015, local Colorado Springs businessman Mike Schmidt, (the CEO of Ensemble Ventures, LLC) a business development professional and experienced entrepreneur joined forces with Ms. Donaldson to co-found, partner and re-start the company as VSS or "Veterans Support Solutions, L3c". Created specifically as an L3c, or "Low Profit Limited Liability Company". (See below for more info on L3c's)
The goal was to establish a new mission as a "Social Impact" company to expand its Transition and Support Services for Veterans, (Under the VSS|Track Name) and to explore options for developing and deploying affordable and obtainable housng for Veterans by developing a new class of Wrap-Around Services-Enabled Pocket Neighboorhoods of emergency, transitional and long term sustainable housing. This is the VSS|Villages Veteran Housing services model.
Adopting a Unique Company Structure:
As VSS was being formed, we wanted to strcuture it as an "L3c" or Low-Profit Limited Liability Company (L3C) that is a legal form of business entity in the United States that was created to bridge the gap between non-profit and for-profit investing by providing a structure that facilitates investments in socially beneficial, for-profit ventures by simplifying compliance with Internal Revenue Service rules for program-related investments, a type of investment that private foundations are allowed to make.
An L3C is a for-profit, social enterprise venture that has a stated goal of performing a socially beneficial purpose, not maximizing income. It's a hybrid structure that combines the legal and tax flexibility of a traditional LLC, the social benefits of a nonprofit organization, and the branding and market positioning advantages of a social enterprise. The L3C is obligated to be mission-driven so there is a clear order of priorities for its fiduciaries. (Click image for detail).
The L3C is designed to make it easier for socially oriented businesses to attract investments from foundations and additional money from private investors. Unlike the traditional LLC, the L3C's articles of organization are required by law to mirror the federal tax standards for program-related investing.
A program-related investment (PRI) is one way in which foundations can satisfy their obligation under the Tax Reform Act of 1969 to distribute at least 5% of their assets every year for charitable purposes. While foundations usually meet this requirement through grants, investments in L3Cs and charities that qualify as PRIs can also fulfill the requirement while allowing the foundations to receive a return.
Contact Us For More Information:
We would welcome the opportunity to earn your trust and deliver you the best service in the industry. Contact us HERE and fill out our initial contact form and let us know how we can be of service to you the Veteran or your family.
