Our members who proudly served the country.

Veterans continue to be our top priority.  We currently have 14 veterans in our shelter on Gray Street.  14 of 40 guests are veterans and are currently in a housing plan being connected to not only housing resources but medical care and VA benefits.  4 of our 12 single adults living at McKown Village are veterans.

Also, potentially interesting.  The average age of the women living in our shelter is 62.  18 women live in our shelter and 12 of them are over the age of 50.  Six use walkers or wheelchairs.  

There was a gentleman named John who came to stay with us last year.  John is one of the men you might see walking up and down Main street as he would visit Food and Shelter in the daytime and go to the library to read in the afternoons and evenings.  Though I did not see John with a shopping cart too often, he did have a large suitcase he pulled with him that helped protect his back from carrying everything he owned in a backpack.  

John suffered from severe anxiety and PTSD from his time in the service.  He served in Afghanistan alongside his army company.  This anxiety and PTSD often made him seem on edge when he was simply just anxious.  He was not dangerous but sometimes looked unkept.  This was simply part of being homeless. If you looked past his rough exterior and took the time to talk to John, you would find his mind was amazing.  He learned tactical things in the army that made him understand mechanics like a savant.  I really enjoyed listening to his stories.  

John and I started to communicate more regularly and we learned together he was eligible for many benefits he had yet to receive.  Using our partner we got him eligible for those benefits which included a HUD VASH voucher.  John was finally getting housed!!  Through our work we got him into a facility to help with his PTSD and anxiety.  He is so much better today.  He is like a different man.  

Stories like this are just as important for non-veterans.  Often what looks dangerous and unappealing (homelessness is dangerous and unappealing for the people experiencing it the most), are people who just need an opportunity.  They are people who grew up with abusive parents who never got a chance.  I often tell people none of the men and women I meet at Food and Shelter were dreaming of being homeless as a kid.  They were dreaming of being football players and doctors and army men.  Life and poverty and abuse got in the way of those dreams.