02.05.2025

2025 Winter Newsletter

2024 Assistance Recap

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, in 2024, CGMA delivered $8.5 million in assistance to over 6,000 clients… that’s the power of us! This support is categorized into three different buckets: Disaster and Emergency Assistance, Day to Day Support, and Education Assistance.

CGMA delivered over $4 million in Disaster and Emergency Assistance, of which $1.2 million were grants.

The second most popular bucket was for Day to Day support, in which CGMA provided $231,000 in grants and $2.5 million in interest-free loans to support rising costs of living. For example, CGMA delivered $1.2 million in rental assistance. CGMA helped 23 clients grow their families, through adoption or assisted reproductive services loans. We also helped non-rates replace their uniforms, so they looked sharp upon arrival at training schools.

CGMA also provided $1.7 million to Coasties pursuing their education goals. Over 2,700 clients received a Supplemental Education Grant (SEG) to off-set the costs of computers or books. Nearly 60 clients received a CG COOL Loan to pursue professional credentials. And 55 clients took out an educational loan, at an average of $3,400 per person.

Back by Popular Demand: CGMA Funds Free Tutoring Services

Thanks to your feedback and support, CGMA has renewed our contract with Tutor.com/military to once again provide an invaluable resource to Coast Guard Active Duty, Reserve, Civilian members, and their families.

Tutor.com/military offers a comprehensive range of academic support to Coast Guard families at no cost. They help with homework, test preparation, writing support, and improving study skills. With access to over 4,000 vetted tutors in more than 150 subject areas, from grade school to college-level courses, Tutor.com covers all bases.

CGMA and WIN Joins Forces to Support Coast Guard Family Building Journeys

CGMA collaborates with WIN, the nation’s leading family-building and family well-being benefit company, to provide comprehensive fertility benefit management services for Coast Guard members. The donated services offered include 24/7 clinical guidance from WIN Nurse Care Advocates, reproductive behavioral support, access to the WIN highly credentialed qualified network of medical and pharmacy providers and on-demand clinical support and resources through the WINFamily app—wherever their duties take them, along with available discounts, and guided counseling on family-building options.

WIN’s expertise, coupled with its dedication to providing personalized clinical support, and access to the largest network of reproductive endocrinologists, and modern mobile centric technology, makes them an ideal partner for CGMA in addressing the unique needs of Coast Guard service members and their families. This collaboration provides comprehensive fertility, adoption, and family planning services to the Coast Guard community, aligning with the shared goal of enhancing the overall well-being of its members.

Tim and Kristin Ozimek shared the impact of CGMA’s family building programs on their family, “Our first daughter was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease, so we used the CGMA ARS loan to help ease the financial burden of expensive fertility treatments. We had a healthy baby girl born this past summer- thanks CGMA!”

Through this initiative, CGMA and WIN aim to provide additional options and support for Coast Guard members who may be facing infertility or seeking fertility treatments.

CGMA Launches Portal to Streamline Application Process

Applying for Assistance from CGMA just got a whole lot easier! This winter, we launched our CGMA Portal which enables members of our Coast Guard community to apply for CGMA assistance online, expanding access while maintaining process integrity.

This online system also allows clients to track the progress of their application.

A recent Active Duty client described his experience, “The portal is very convenient. I am assigned to a detached duty position and was able to complete my application easily.”

The new system boasts some great perks:

Each step of the application process is explained
Spouses can initiate applications
Clients can track their applications
Requests are reviewed by CGMA Representatives more quickly.

Applications are typically processed within 3 to 5 days.

A few tips to keep in mind when completing an online application:

Make sure to upload the correct corresponding documents
Double check your Zelle or banking information for disbursement (if incorrect, it will slow down the process for receiving funds)

The new CGMA Portal is a big step in CGMA’s modernization and the enhanced capabilities of this system will allow us to serve our community more efficiently.

CGMA IN THE NEWS and OTHER EVENTS

CGMA’s partner in philanthropy, the USCGA Alumni Association, published an article about surprises CEO Brooke Millard learned about CGMA in her first few months in the new role. Read that article here: CGAAA Bulletin Article

In the Cutter, the quarterly publication by the Foundation for Coast Guard History, Brooke offers a story gleaned from the May 1957 Board of Directors Meeting Minutes in which CGMA provided a Chief Petty Officer William Trump with an interest-free loan to pay medical bills prior to transferring to Puerto Rico. It’s unlikely the Board of Directors then realized Trump was a Silver Star recipient for his D-Day efforts on Omaha Beach nor that he had 8 children, two of whom had severe medical challenges, as this information was not noted in his request. Almost certainly the Board could not have imagined that, one day, a Coast Guard cutter be dedicated in his name.

CGMA TO HOST COASTAL GRIT AT THE OCC IN CLEARWATER, FL 19 MAY

After reading a note from Cutter Venturous CO CDR Karen Kutkiewicz, CGMA was inspired to create “Coastal Grit” an event to celebrate the strength and resilience of the Tampa Bay Coast Guard community. CDR Karen Kutkiewicz, who writes,

“The aftermath of Hurricane Helene was devastating. Our house was flooded with 2-feet of water and deemed uninhabitable. With less than two weeks to salvage what we could into storage and settle into our new 2-bedroom furnished condo, Hurricane Milton forced us to once again evacuate. I got my ship underway, and Todd, the kids, and the dogs headed for shelter… Our friends, family, and Coast Guard co-workers helped tremendously in our time of need. This has been the most trying time in my life. I cried daily until recently.’

CGMA will host Coastal Grit at the Orange County Choppers Roadhouse and Museum in Clearwater on 19 May Guided by a local planning committee who represents the community we serve, Coastal Grit will be a celebration “For Coasties, By Coasties.” Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, the party will include a cocktail reception, a BBQ, awards and a short program, and a performance by the Bearded Brothers Band. We invite ALL members of our amazing Coast Guard community: Active Duty, Civilian Employees, Reservists, Auxiliarists, Retirees, and families to join us! The venue can fit 1,000 and we intend to reach capacity. First 400 to register for a ticket get it free; after that, it’s just $20 per person. Hope to see you there!! Register here: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/mycgma/event/cgmacoastalgrit/

If you’re interested in becoming a sponsor for this event, or the CGMA Invitational Golf Tournament at Barefoot Resort in Myrtle Beach 11-15 November, please contact Alena Howard.

Message from CEO 

2024 was another banner year for CGMA as we delivered over $8.5M in support to Active Duty membersalone. That support is incredible, considering CGMA is 100% funded by donations! Thanks to over $3 million in contributions and strong investment performance, we were able to provide this vital assistance when it was needed most.

As this newsletter content attests, our CGMA team is running full-speed ahead. This winter, we experienced the joys and pains of transferring our data to a Salesforce platform and we continue to learn more about system capabilities each day. Ultimately, this tech advancement will enable us to work more efficiently and access data faster to inform strategic decisions. One of the most meaningful improvements is new capability for individuals to apply for CGMA assistance online, expanding access while maintaining process integrity.

I’m excited about our May 19 Coastal Grit event, the first of its kind, and I hope to see many of you there. This event is also our annual meeting. Annual meeting requirements for nonprofits in Virginia are few, but one must be held and it shall be a “meeting of members” which this event will certainly be. We are promoting Coastal Grit to the community we serve and expect a good representation of our members: Active Duty, Civilian Employees, Reservists, Auxiliarists, Retirees, and families. The event will neither look nor feel like a meeting; it’ll be a party. All the administrative requirements for an Annual Meeting will have already taken place. On 19 February, our new slate of Board of Directors will be elected; by April our 990 IRS data will have been submitted. Coastal Grit will include a short program during dinner, where we will acknowledge CGMA’s tremendous impact in 2024, discuss our future, as well as honor a few amazing supporters as awardees. I’m grateful to our sponsors for their tremendous support!

Finally, I’d like to express my gratitude to all those who support and advocate for CGMA. I recognize that the Coast Guard community has several philanthropic organizations in which to donate. Know that when you support CGMA, more than .77 of your dollar goes directly to Coasties in need[1]. All non-profit organizations must use a portion of donations to support administrative and fundraising functions, like the salaries of our employees who collect and distribute funds, the investment in technology that enables us to provide better support to our clients, and campaign mailers to generate contributions. That said, the culture at CGMA is lean and thrifty so that funds raised can support those who need it most—our Coast Guard community.

How can you better support CGMA? First, you can donate. Second, if you’ve benefited from CGMA support, you can provide a testimonial here so we can share your story. And third, you can share this newsletter with your network to spread the word on how CGMA positively impacts our Coast Guard community. On behalf of the 132,000 members we serve, I thank you for our continuous support of CGMA!

Yours in Service,  

Brooke Millard, CDR, USCG, Ret. 
Chief Executive Officer, CGMA  

[1] When comparing the most-recent data from Charity Navigator (2023) https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/042899862