[Vision2020] 1 in 4 Homeless is a Veteran

[Sue Hovey]

Janesta,  I read that post and believe I fit the description of one of those who works for the homeless and neglected, and I wasn't offended by what Tom wrote.  He's right, you know.  So many just walk on by, and the absolute disregard by the Bush administration and Congress is appalling and heartbreaking.  We let war use men and women as fodder then toss them aside with little regard for their wounds, both visible and not so visible.  

Thanks for what you do for fellow human beings.  Some of the best work people do goes unseen by the rest of us.  Tom is a man of conscience who has an acerbic bite.  That isn't a bad thing, you know. (An inappropriate place for that voice is when it is unearned or used on the defenseless--on school kids by teachers,  for example.)    You actually have the wonderful gift yourself.  So please, let it go.  I don't believe his posting was deserving of your rebuke and the article that he provided was important, and an indictment against those who foster such neglect.

Sue Hovey

----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Janesta 
  To: Tom Hansen 
  Cc: Moscow Vision 2020 
  Sent: Thursday, November 08, 2007 6:51 AM
  Subject: Re: [Vision2020] 1 in 4 Homeless is a Veteran


  Tom,

  I take GREAT offense to your comment prior to the story you posted. 

  Do you have any idea what I do for people that are homeless? Do you have any idea what the other fine people on this list, and in our community do? No, you don't, or you would not have posted such an outright ignornant comment. 

  You want people to give, and have compassion? You might try listing a local, Spokane, or Coeur d' Alene group that is helping these brave, bruised, and broken men and women. Tell us what YOU are doing. When are you making a trip to where the vets are with food, blankets and warm clothing for the winter? Let me know, I'll be one of the first to donate. 

  Having a member of the family who is mentally ill and homeless is one of the most heart-breaking events that can happen to a family. Sadly, I know this from first hand knowledge.

  Janesta
   
  On 11/8/07, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com> wrote: 
    Here is another topic for you to consider after you have ignoringly walked
    by the donation cup on Veterans' day with less concern than throwing your 
    dog a bone.

    >From today's (November 8, 2007)

    ------------------------------------------------------------

    1 in 4 homeless is a veteran, study says

    1,500 are from ongoing wars

    Kimberly Hefling
    Associated Press
    November 8, 2007

    WASHINGTON - Veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United
    States, though they are only 11 percent of the general adult population,
    according to a report to be released today. 

    And homelessness is not just a problem among middle-age and elderly
    veterans. Younger veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are trickling into
    shelters and soup kitchens seeking services, treatment or help with finding 
    a job.

    The Veterans Affairs Department has identified 1,500 homeless veterans from
    the current wars and says 400 of them have participated in its programs
    specifically targeting homelessness.

    The National Alliance to End Homelessness, a public education nonprofit, 
    based the findings of its report on numbers from Veterans Affairs and the
    Census Bureau. 2005 data estimated that 194,254 homeless people out of
    744,313 on any given night were veterans.

    In comparison, the VA says that 20 years ago, the estimated number of 
    veterans who were homeless on any given night was 250,000.

    Some advocates say such an early presence of veterans from Iraq and
    Afghanistan at shelters does not bode well for the future. It took roughly a
    decade for the lives of Vietnam veterans to unravel to the point that they
    started showing up among the homeless. Advocates worry that intense and
    repeated deployments leave newer veterans particularly vulnerable.

    "We're going to be having a tsunami of them eventually because the mental
    health toll from this war is enormous," said Daniel Tooth, director of
    veterans affairs for Lancaster County, Pa.

    While services to homeless veterans have improved in the past 20 years, 
    advocates hope more will be done to prevent homelessness and provide
    affordable housing to the younger veterans while there's a window of
    opportunity.

    "When the Vietnam War ended, that was part of the problem. The war was over, 
    it was off TV, nobody wanted to hear about it," said John Keaveney, a
    Vietnam veteran and a founder of New Directions in Los Angeles, which
    provides substance abuse help, job training and shelter to veterans. 

    "I think they'll be forgotten," Keaveney said of Iraq and Afghanistan
    veterans. "People get tired of it. It's not glitzy that these are young,
    honorable, patriotic Americans. They'll just be veterans, and that happens 
    after every war."

    Keaveney said it's difficult for his group to persuade some homeless Iraq
    veterans to stay for treatment and help because they don't relate to the
    older veterans. Those who stayed have had success - one is now a stockbroker 
    and another is applying to be a police officer, he said.

    The Iraq vets seeking help with homelessness are more likely to be women,
    less likely to have substance abuse problems, but more likely to have mental 
    illness - mostly related to post-traumatic stress, said Pete Dougherty,
    director of homeless veterans programs at the VA.

    Overall, 45 percent of participants in the VA's homeless programs have a
    diagnosable mental illness and more than three out of four have a substance 
    abuse problem, while 35 percent have both, Dougherty said.

    ------------------------------------------------------------

    Seeya round town, Moscow.

    Tom Hansen
    Moscow, Idaho

    "I was a soldier. 
    I am a soldier.
    I will always be a soldier."

    - Army Veteran Slogan


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