... Veterans and Homelessness: What programs are being put in place to help. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought renewed attention to the needs of veterans, including the needs of homeless veterans. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reported that in FY2008 it assessed more than 1,500 veterans who served in the Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom theater of operations for participation in its Health Care for Homeless Veterans Program. Both male and female veterans have been over represented in the homeless population, and as the number of veterans increases due to these conflicts, there is concern that the number of homeless veterans could rise commensurately. The current economic downturn also has raised concerns that homelessness could increase among all groups, including veterans. Congress has created numerous programs that serve homeless veterans specifically, almost all of which are funded through the Veterans Health Administration. These programs provide health care and rehabilitation services for homeless veterans (the Health Care for Homeless Veterans and Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans programs), employment assistance (Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program and Compensated Work Therapy program), transitional housing (Grant and Per Diem program) as well as other supportive services. The VA also works with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide permanent supportive housing to homeless veterans through...
Words: 985 - Pages: 4
...Homeless Veterans in America Name Institution Part 1 Statistics show that there are between 130,000 and 200,000 homeless veterans in America. Homeless veterans amount to about one-fourth and one-fifth of the entire homeless population in America. Homeless veterans are a population of Americans who have at one time or the other served their country in war. An estimated 131,000 veterans spend a night homeless, and this population doubles if one considers the population of homeless veterans over the course of the year. An approximate of 40% homeless men are veterans that are a significant considering 34% of the general adult male population is composed of veterans. Besides being homeless, this population faces other problems which include; social, economic, and psychological problems (Alker, 2009). Homeless veterans are more likely to suffer addiction as compared to the general population. According to Alker (2009), 76% of homeless veterans are alcohol or drug addicts. Because of the painful memories and the new reality of homelessness that dawn on them they turn to alcohol and drugs. Coupled with all the problems these homeless veterans experience social problems such as isolation. For this reason, they have no one to share their pains with and, therefore, they rarely receive help for treatable conditions such as addiction (Center for American Progress, 2008). Economic stressors are a root cause of homelessness for American veterans. The skills acquired from their military...
Words: 2411 - Pages: 10
...Homeless Veterans Homeless Veterans, we see them everywhere and we always want to stop and donate but we never have time or no money ourselves. Should we spare a penny or two for them? The homeless veterans you see on the street did a favor for us by serving for our country and we should thank them and take two seconds out of our day to spare a few cents to make their day better. Homeless Veterans are common all around the United States. The percentage of homeless veterans go up when you're in a big city but have you thought of the percentage of homeless people in small towns. You seem them on street corners with their cardboard sign asking for help you look over and see them standing there. Take a second to help them. Even if it's a quarter it could make a...
Words: 596 - Pages: 3
...Advocate Role Homeless veterans and his or her families are assisted more in the United States than any other nation in the world. The benefits system for veterans trace back to 1636. Homeless veterans are placed in a mentally and physically position with his or her family. The basic needs for homeless veterans are shelter, medical, and other problems he or she may have. In this assignment advocacy will be defined and the problems veterans are facing. In addition, this assignment will recommend a plan to meet challenges. Finally, the assignment will include how an advocate assists with housing, treatment, short, and long-term medical care, probation education, and domestic violence. Advocacy The definition for advocacy is active support for or recommendation of a particular cause or policy. Also advocacy is the profession or work of a legal advocate. Defending helpless people from taken advantage of, this could include going to curt on the client behalf. Helping to develop new homeless veteran programs in remote areas, the advocate must be familiar with existing programs and the needs of the community is the primary issues for advocacy to address. The advocate empowers the veteran and helps the client set goals for short and long-term achievement. Educating veterans or clients about resources and locating available resources is a help for the homeless, and the advocate must work to change policies that limit the abilities of veterans (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2011). ...
Words: 963 - Pages: 4
...Homeless Veterans In April 1997 Venessa Turner joined the U.S Army and advanced to the rank of sergeant. Venessa was deployed to a camp 20 miles west of Baghdad, when one day she collapsed in 130 degree heat. This put Turner into a coma and she nearly died of heath failure. In 2003 Venessa was released with a pending medical discharge from Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C, after her release, her story turned for the worst. The military did end up discharging Venessa Turner, with no place to live or ongoing health care. The result of this lead to Venessa having to move place to place, sleeping on friend and families couches and it was just her alone she also had a daughter. With no help from the VA or military housing Venessa and her daughter was left homeless. (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans) “One of every three...
Words: 1183 - Pages: 5
...Launch MKT/571 June 3, 2011 Product Launch Plan Raven’s Outreach Center is a homeless shelter for male veterans the center is in need of a new product launch that will increase awareness about the homeless veterans in Baton Rouge and surrounding areas. Team E has created a plan outlining the services that Raven’s Outreach Center currently offers along with the new services that can be implemented within the business. The plan below also discusses the challenges that Ravens currently faces and the ways to mitigate challenges into opportunities of growth for the organization. Raven’s Outreach Center is a large nonprofit homeless shelter for homeless male veterans in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Raven’s Outreach Center has provided over 10 years of compassionate and empowering support to homeless male veterans in the capital area through outreach and advocacy services. Ravens serve veterans from areas across the world. Each race, including white, black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic men. There is a major correlation between homeless and personal economic instability. Drugs have been identified as a primary cause of homeless veterans. Economic dependence often keeps men trapped in environments not meant for habitation. There is a high-demand on the market for the services Ravens Outreach Center provides because of high homeless rate within the male veterans. Ravens are a homeless shelter center certified to present a safe and sound environment with a maximum of 52 beds....
Words: 1181 - Pages: 5
...Soto-Schwantz 5 October 2015 Help for Homeless Veterans It should be obvious by now that our homeless veterans are not being served well at all. If the homeless veterans were properly cared for by our country, the total homeless population would fall by more than 40 percent over night. Homeless services would then have sufficient funding to move many of the rest of the homeless off the streets into transitional housing with services that bring them back into the working population. It would be a dream come true. If only our country would step up to the plate, homelessness in our country would be virtually eliminated. If only…. Lets Summarize the Homeless Veteran Situation. 750,000 total homeless count in U.S 400,000 veterans are homeless at some time in a year 200,000 veterans homeless in any one night 27% of our male U.S. population are veterans but 43% of all homeless males are veterans – why? 7688 beds funded by the VA for homeless veterans 192,312 sleeping elsewhere – shelters, grates, creek beds, back alleys. We have Heroes sleeping on sidewalks in every big city. The VA says homelessness is not related to military service, but Veterans are twice as likely to be homeless than civilians. We may think that homeless veterans served poorly in military, but: 95% of homeless vets have honorable discharges. The VA claims it has the largest network of homeless assistance programs in the country, but: Total VA funding is only $1.37 per homeless vet per day.VA funded beds...
Words: 1282 - Pages: 6
...United States Veterans Martha Clark Adventist University of Health Sciences Abstract The purpose of this paper is to critique the article “Homelessness among a national representative sample of US veterans: prevalence, service utilization, and correlates,” which is a case study on the topic of homeless veterans in the United States. This article finds that low income, younger age, and poor mental and physical health had significant impact on whether a veteran would spend time homeless. The conclusions found in this article will be examined and compared with other related articles and data. This article shows that there is a correlation between veterans of foreign wars and periods of homelessness....
Words: 2244 - Pages: 9
...Homeless Veterans QNT/275 05/16/2016 Joseph Krupka Homeless Veterans There are too many homeless veterans living on the streets. Our American veterans have put their lives on the line, yet America still allows for its veterans to live on the streets with no shelter. I am on a mission still, a mission to help the veterans get off the streets. The Star of Hope Mission is a nonprofit organization that was founded back in 1906. The founder Reverend Pevoto arrived in Houston with a vision. According to "Star Of Hope" (2016), Mr. Pevotos mission was to come to “establish a refuge for Houston’s lost community of men—men who had fallen on hard times and never recovered, men who were alcoholic, helpless and hopeless with no place to go. It was to be named the Star of Hope Mission” (History). I currently work for the Star of Hope mission as a homeless outreach specialist and veteran subject matter expert. As a disabled veteran myself. It saddens me to see that about 20% of the homeless people that I come across have served their country and still live on the streets. I have come up with the 20% based off of some sampling that I have collected while out in the field working. On every Wednesday, I hand out Hygiene kits and water at the (EAC) Houston Emergency Aid Coalition as I hand out goods I would ask each client if they are a veteran or not. Asking the clients allows me to determine if there are additional programs to get our clients permanent housing. My results where...
Words: 707 - Pages: 3
...HOMELESS VETERANS (REENTERING AMERICA) All my life I have always had this thing about wanting to help other people. Maybe it was a calling from a higher power or just maybe I didn’t like how my upbringing was and I vowed to help others. I just can’t stand by and see people suffer. As I got older my passion grew stronger, it was just in me. After I graduated from high school I joined the military, got to travel and see the world. After Desert Strom and being in Bosnia in a “peace mission”, I saw a lot of my fellow veterans come home disabled, lame, and mentally exhausted. That’s when it really hit home I wanted to help anyway I could. First of all I had to get myself together; I didn’t come home all that well either. I suffered PTSD symptoms which led me downhill fast and also, I became...
Words: 1162 - Pages: 5
...Homelessness is defined as a lack of a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence and is associated with poor health and subsequent morbidity (Gordon, Haas, Luther, Hilton, & Goldstein, 2010). Veterans make up about 11% of the adult population; they make up 26% of the homeless population (Weidman, Executive Director, & Vietnam Veterans of America, n.d). An estimated 47% of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era, more than 67% served the nation for at least three years, and 33% were stationed in a war zone (Boone, Executive Director, & National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, n.d). Biases and Stereotypes Individuals label the homeless with stereotypes and personal biases due to lack of knowledge. These same stereotypes label the men and women who have served our country in WWII, Korea, the Cold War, Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Some individuals believe that all homeless are lazy and do not want to work; they would rather sit alongside a road and beg for money, so they can buy their alcohol or drugs. Homeless are thought of as individuals who have made poor choices in their lives. Many veterans who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are thought of as crazy and not able to function in society any more. Individuals may think that veterans have it made with benefits provided for themselves and their families including better health care than most of the working population in America. Demographics Numerous reasons can contribute...
Words: 1202 - Pages: 5
...many people, even veterans, face. This broad issue imposes many other more specific issues that harm the mental, physical, and psychological well-being of those on the streets. American Veterans make a lot of sacrifices. However, when they come home, they often times are treated unfairly if they don’t adjust to normal life quickly enough. It is due to mental and physical issues as well as substance abuse that veterans are unable to easily rejoin society. While there are basic issues that every homeless man or woman faces, there is a myriad of problems that specifically affect homeless veterans. There are many different examples of these unique differences, too. Veterans happen to be homeless longer, also older, they are more likely to be minorities such as Latinos or African Americans, and veterans are typically more educated than other civilians...
Words: 1568 - Pages: 7
...Homeless Veterans in the United States Mark Hernandez ITT Technical Institute – San Bernardino Abstract This paper discusses the homeless problem among United States veterans. It draws on statistics from The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that shows what percentage veterans make-up of the overall homeless population. It touches on the issues that returning veterans struggle with, and the factors involved with those who become homeless. It also will point out that solutions are too slow to come to the aid of those in need. Homeless Veterans in the United States Homelessness is an ever increasing problem in the United States, and no group is more affected than veterans of the military. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that nearly 60,000 veterans were homeless in 2013 (National Coalition of Homeless Veterans). Many of the servicemen and women returning from deployment suffer from physical disabilities or are dealing with mental health issues such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD. Their need for medical care and the task of reinserting themselves back into civilian life is often too much for someone lacking a support structure. The financial burdens, or in some cases substance abuse, a byproduct of the stress following their deployment, often drives these veterans out of normal society to living on the streets. Medical treatment, whether physical or psychological, is the most important factor...
Words: 602 - Pages: 3
...Everyday America’s Veterans come home from fighting over seas, just to find out that they can’t find any jobs. American Veterans risk their life everyday and sacrifice a lot for the United States, just to be rewarded with a struggle of finding a job or in worst cases not being able to get a job at all. Homeless veterans are becoming a big problem everyday and it is the society’s responsibility to take care of them. These veterans risked their lives to give American citizens freedom and a safe home to live in, and all they get is a boot to the street. Now it’s time for those veterans to be rewarded with a clean bed and a hot meal. According to Shaw a writer at Newsmax, wrote that in America it was estimated that there is more than 50,000 homeless veterans. Also, 92 percent of those homeless vets were male and the other 8 percent were female. According to Shaw returning veterans are twice as likely to become chronically homeless. In addition to 50 percent of all homeless veterans suffer from disabilities and are between the ages of 18-50 years old. The cause for veterans becoming homeless is due to poverty, lack of support from groups...
Words: 589 - Pages: 3
...America’s Homeless Veterans We see homeless people every day. We may choose to look at them or maybe we turn away and ignore their presence. We often label them as “Losers” or “Bums”. The one thing we can’t ignore is that we seem to see more and more of them each day and we now see women among their ranks. We rarely stop to think about the persons past, careers they may have had, families that love them, or don’t love them, and we never stop to consider that a lot of these people have served in our Armed Forces. The term, “Homeless Veteran” appalls most of us because we don’t want to think that the country they served, “The United States of America”, has turned its back on these individuals. Doesn’t that imply that “We” have turned our backs on them as well? If the Government is in charge of the care of our Veterans, and we as citizens vote for the people responsible for making decisions on our behalf, isn’t this a direct reflection of us as a society? We tend to vote in favor of the politician who cuts the funding of social programs in the name of saving tax dollars without considering the consequences. There are always consequences. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD, estimates the number of Homeless Veterans at roughly 50,000 on any given night while other sources place that number at roughly 130,000. I have found that all statistics given by any U.S. Government source are always extremely low, perhaps to influence public perception. The...
Words: 2815 - Pages: 12
