Andrew Holbert, Executive Director of Courtney Place Veterans Housing, was one of 37 leaders chosen nationwide for the George W. Bush Institute’s 2026 Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program.
SALEM — Andrew Holbert’s work helping veterans in Salem has earned national recognition.
Holbert, Executive Director of Courtney Place Veterans Housing, was selected as one of 37 leaders from across the country for the George W. Bush Institute’s 2026 Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program, a highly competitive program for people working to improve outcomes for veterans and their families.
For Salem, the selection is more than a personal honor for Holbert. It puts a local veteran housing organization and its support model into a national conversation about how communities can better serve former service members.
Holbert served four years in the Marine Corps, from 2007 to 2011, and was stationed at Twentynine Palms, California. His military work included amphibious assault vehicle operations, a role tied to supporting field movement, protection and mission support for units operating in deployed environments. That experience, combined with his later work in government and nonprofit leadership, now shapes how he approaches veteran services in Salem.
Holbert, a Marine Corps Iraq War veteran, leads Courtney Place Veterans Housing, a Salem-based nonprofit that provides affordable housing and supportive services for low-income veterans. He also helps oversee the Essential Goods Pantry, a program that works like a food pantry but focuses on household and hygiene items veterans may need to maintain stability.
Together, Holbert said, the programs are built around a simple idea: housing matters, but housing alone is not enough.
“What makes Courtney Place unique is that we are intentionally ‘more than just housing,’” Holbert said. “Housing is the foundation, but we also focus heavily on community, peer support, transportation, food access, healthcare navigation, employment, and reducing isolation.”
That approach appears to be part of what stood out to the Bush Institute. The Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program brings together leaders from across the country who are working in veteran services, government, nonprofits, business, health care and related fields. Scholars spend the program developing leadership skills, learning from national experts and strengthening projects that can improve the lives of veterans and military families.
Holbert said he believes Courtney Place’s practical, community-based model helped set him apart.
“I think they chose me because my experience,” Holbert said. “I served as a Marine Corps Iraq War veteran, worked in government on veterans’ issues, and now lead a nonprofit providing affordable housing and supportive services for low-income veterans.”
The recognition also reflects the work of the Courtney Place team and its partners. Holbert said the organization’s strength comes from collaboration, not trying to do everything alone. Courtney Place works to connect veterans with the right people and services, whether that means housing support, employment help, health care navigation or basic goods that can ease day-to-day pressure.
“Everything we do is collaborative,” Holbert said. “I save money by being collaborative, by allowing other organizations who are good at education, employment, whatever, to do what they’re good at.”
Courtney Place’s Essential Goods Pantry is one example of that broader support model. Instead of food, the pantry provides household and hygiene items, the kinds of basic supplies that can be easy to overlook but difficult to go without. For veterans trying to stay housed, rebuild routines or stretch limited income, those items can make a real difference.
Holbert said the combination of Courtney Place and the pantry could become a model for other communities.
“I believe that between the Essential Goods Pantry and Courtney Place, that we can make a severe dent in the areas that veterans are struggling the most,” Holbert said.
His acceptance into the Bush Institute program gives him a chance to test that idea nationally. Holbert said he is looking forward to learning from other leaders who are approaching veteran support from different angles, while also sharing what Salem has built.
“I’m looking forward most to being surrounded by other leaders from across the country who are deeply committed to improving outcomes for veterans and their families,” Holbert said. “One of the challenges in veteran services is that too many organizations operate in silos. I want to learn from leaders who are solving problems in different ways, bring those ideas back to Oregon, and also share what we’ve learned through Courtney Place and our wraparound support model.”
Holbert said the program has already opened his eyes to ideas he had not encountered before. In an early cohort meeting, he met a participant from Nashville working with music producers and studios to help veterans communicate their transition stories through music and art.
For Holbert, that kind of exchange is the point. Even after years in veteran advocacy, he said there are still new ways to reach people, build trust and support veterans as they move from military life into civilian communities.
He also believes the country needs a broader story about veterans. Too often, he said, the public conversation focuses only on crisis: homelessness, addiction, suicide and trauma. Those issues are real, but they do not capture the full picture of veterans’ lives or the work being done by veteran-led organizations.
“The narrative for veterans is broken,” Holbert said. “We’re doing so much good, and nobody talks about that at all.”
His concern is not that the hard issues should be ignored. National data continues to show why veteran support remains urgent. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ latest annual report found 6,398 veteran suicide deaths in 2023, an average of 17.5 per day. Holbert’s point is that services cannot be built only around crisis. They also have to create stability, belonging and a path forward.
That belief shapes how he talks about Courtney Place. He sees housing as the foundation, not the finish line.
Courtney Place’s mission emphasizes affordable, safe and supportive housing for U.S. veterans, with wraparound services aimed at independence, wellness and community. The Essential Goods Pantry adds another layer by giving staff a natural way to identify needs and connect veterans with broader support, including partners such as the Marion County Veterans Service Office and Oregon Department of Human Services.
Holbert also sees a gap before veterans ever arrive at places like Courtney Place. He believes service members should be connected earlier with state veteran agencies, especially when they know where they plan to live after leaving the military.
“If I’m in California, I’m stationed in California, I’m going to get out and I’m going to move to Oregon, then I should be connected to the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs before I leave the Marine Corps,” Holbert said.
That kind of practical thinking is central to his work. Courtney Place is not built around one grand solution. It is built around many smaller supports that, together, can help a veteran stay stable: housing, supplies, transportation, community, accountability and someone who knows which phone call to make.
“We built a model centered on dignity, accountability, and long-term stability for veterans, and I think that practical, community-based approach stood out,” Holbert said. “I believe sustainable impact happens through strong partnerships, practical solutions, and leaders willing to challenge the status quo while still staying grounded in service.”
For Salem, the national recognition is a point of pride. One of 37 people chosen from across the country is leading a veterans housing organization here, building programs here and carrying lessons from Salem into a national leadership network.
Holbert’s selection does not just recognize his résumé. It recognizes the work of a team helping veterans stay housed, supplied and connected in the community.
And now, that work has a chance to reach further.