ROA has been invited to join the prestigious White Oak Collaborative in recognition of our unique insights and expertise in the arena of reserve component families.

Adapted from the collaborative’s website, the White Oak Collaborative addresses the challenges faced by military- and veteran-connected communities through data-driven, cross-sector partnerships among its members for direct service and/or policy-level solutions—while applying a whole-of-family lens.

The WOC is a coalition of organizations committed to supporting service members, veterans, wounded warriors, caregivers, survivors, and their families. Participation in the WOC is by nomination and invitation.

“The invitation to join the White Oak Collaborative is prestigious for ROA,” said the association’s president-elect, Peggy Wilmoth, Ph.D., RN. “This invitation is an honor, and it inserts ROA into a place where reserve component families, their needs, and their issues can be highlighted within the larger military family community.”

Blue Star Families is the convening authority and secretariat for the collaborative, with more than 150 members representing military and veteran support organizations, other nonprofits, and private, philanthropic, government, and community sectors. The work of the White Oak Collaborative is non-partisan.

Led by a board of oversight and rotating steering committee of member organizations, the collaborative holds off-the-record partners’ calls approximately every two weeks, where members hear updates, share relevant data, and learn about government and military priorities for the purpose of better serving our constituencies.