Images of light rail, placard, and emergency call box courtesy of Valley Metro.
June 21, 2026
Be Connected and Valley Metro Expand Community Reach
Across Arizona, one question continues to shape our work: “How do we make support easier to find for people who may not know where to start?”
This question guides how we think about outreach, partnerships, upstream suicide prevention, and community connection. It challenges us to look beyond traditional service settings and ask where veterans, service members, and their family members are already moving through daily life. The goal is to think differently about access.
- Where are people already going?
- What public spaces do they move through?
- What moments might create an opening for awareness, reflection, or action?
Sometimes, support begins in a hospital, a resource fair, or a community event. But sometimes it begins in an everyday space such as a transit platform. This approach builds on a broader effort to find everyday places where connection can begin earlier, more naturally, and with less pressure.
This commitment to reach deep into the community and connect people to support is a shared value at the heart of a new partnership between the Arizona Coalition for Military Families (ACMF) and Valley Metro. The purpose is to widen the front door into the statewide support system accessible through the Be Connected support line.
Through this partnership, Valley Metro and ACMF are bringing support information into public spaces. Informational decals are now on emergency call boxes at Valley Metro light rail stations throughout the Phoenix metro area. The decals include a QR code, the Be Connected support line, 866-4AZ-VETS, and a direct link to ConnectVeterans.org/Metro. Arizona service members, veterans, and their family members can connect to no-cost, confidential support through the Be Connected support line.
It is a simple idea with an important purpose: to make support more visible where people already are.
Making Support More Visible
The decal (above) is on Valley Metro’s light rail emergency call boxes at all light rail stations in the Phoenix metro area.
For someone waiting for light rail, walking through a station, commuting to work, or heading to an appointment, the decal may create a small but meaningful opening. They may take a picture or even save the number for later. It may be a great reminder to text that military-connected friend or family member. It may be the first time someone realizes there is a place to start and people who care.
Why Public Transit Matters
Public transit is part of the daily rhythm of the Phoenix metro area. People use Valley Metro light rail to get to work, school, appointments, services, and community events.
Stations are places where people move through the community. They are also places where people pause. They wait. They look around. They notice what is nearby. They check signs and review maps, often with a smartphone in hand. That makes Valley Metro light rail stations meaningful places to share information that can help someone connect.
The emergency call boxes are already recognizable public safety fixtures. Placing Be Connected information on or near them creates another visible point of connection in a place where people may naturally look for help, direction, or reassurance.
- Someone may scan the QR code while waiting for the train.
- Someone may save 866-4AZ-VETS in their phone.
- Someone may visit ConnectVeterans.org/Metro later that day.
- Someone may send the page to a veteran or family member they care about.
- Someone may remember the resource weeks later when a need comes up.
That is what makes this type of outreach so important. It does not depend on someone already knowing what to search for. It does not require someone to attend an event or walk into an office. It simply puts information within reach.
Small moments can matter. A sign in the right place at the right time can help someone take a first step.
A Partnership Built Around Community Reach
Public transit spaces serve people across the Phoenix metro area every day. By working together, Valley Metro and ACMF are bringing helpful information into familiar, visible, and widely used public spaces. This helps make support easier to find, not only for service members and veterans, but also for the people who care about them.
This is one of the reasons the partnership is so exciting. It shows what can happen when community partners work together to make connections easier. It is practical, visible, and easy to share. It brings support into a setting that already belongs to the community.
The decals are not asking someone to have everything figured out. They are not asking someone to know exactly what they need. They are simply creating an opening.
- Support is available.
- There is a place to start.
- There is more than one way to connect.
Three Simple Ways to Connect
The Valley Metro decals direct people to ConnectVeterans.org/Metro, where they can choose from three simple ways to connect with Be Connected.
Call 866-4AZ-VETS
The team members will listen, talk through needs, and work to connect the caller with resources and support.
- A person does not need to know exactly what they need before calling.
- Someone may be looking for specific help with housing, employment, food, transportation, benefits navigation, family needs, or wellness.
- Others may simply know that things feel hard, and they would like to talk through possible next steps.
- The Be Connected support line gives people a place to begin.
Submit a Referral
People can also submit a referral for themselves or for someone they would like to help.
- A referral can be a helpful option for a military-connected or veteran-connected family member, friend, coworker, provider, neighbor, or community partner who wants to help someone connect.
- The referral form is also a starting point.
- It begins a process where caring, specially-trained Be Connected support line team members serve as a guide to listen, understand, and navigate available resources.
Sign Up for Texts
Veterans can also sign up for weekly text check-ins through Early Alert, a low-pressure way to access support.
- For some veterans, text check-ins may feel like an easier first step.
- They may not be ready for a conversation yet, and that is okay.
- These automated check-ins have simple prompts to reflect on how things are going. Based on responses, services and resources may be offered.
The weekly check-ins create a regular reminder that support is available in a way that feels simple, familiar, and easy to use.
Confidential, No-Cost Support
Be Connected support line services are confidential and offered at no cost to Arizona service members, veterans, and their family members. Whether someone is looking for resources, trying to help someone else, or simply unsure what the next step should be, the Be Connected team can talk through needs and help identify options.
This partnership shows what is possible when organizations team up with a shared purpose: reaching more people, in more places, with information that can help. By working together, ACMF and Valley Metro are making Be Connected easier to notice, easier to share, and easier to access across the Phoenix metro area.
