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Shelter Network, a nonprofit that provides services for homeless people on the Peninsula, has been awarded a federal grant of $753,399 for a new program to help homeless veterans and their families, and those at risk of becoming homeless.
Much of the support will be provided at Haven Family House in Menlo Park, said Chris Canter, director of development for Shelter Network.
The grant is part of $60 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs given to 85 nonprofit agencies across the country with a goal to reach 22,000 low-income veterans and their families over the next year.
Some 18 percent of Shelter Network clients are veterans, according to spokesperson Maria Duzon.
Shelter Network works with the VA to serve homeless veterans at its adult shelter in Redwood City and four family facilities, she said. Shelter Network, which will launch the new program in the fall, will partner with Samaritan House, a human services agency based in San Mateo, to implement parts of the program.
In addition to food and board, Shelter Network helps with job and housing searches, gives life skills workshops, and provides medical and mental health services. Shelter Network also finances supportive services such as childcare, transportation and rental assistance.
Visit va.gov/homeless/ssvf.asp for more information about the program called Supportive Services for Veteran Families.
Excellent news. It’s wonderful to see our veterans receiving the support they have earned.
The present statistic is that 18 veterans are committing suicide daily in the United States. This is a tragedy our nation cannot accept.
As reported on other websites, “recently the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal condemned the Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) for “egregious problems” in the operation of its health care system for our nation’s veterans. In a 104-page opinion, the Court of Appeals concluded that an influx of injured troops returning from deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan has overwhelmed the VA, exacerbating already lengthy delays in providing vital health care and benefits to injured veterans, and thereby violating veterans’ constitutional “due process rights to receive the care and benefits they are guaranteed by statute for harms and injuries sustained while serving our country. ”
It’s is great to see the VA and our local NGO’s responding. This is a great start.
Frankly, we need to start doing more to honor our veterans locally.