some of my friends have said they can't believe how we actually treat our veterans...

[winterhart]

Here's a response from the VA

This is in response to your inquiry dated January 10, 2010, regarding homeless Veterans.

The HUD/VASH program is intended to help Veterans currently living on the streets. The program assists Veterans in obtaining government subsidized housing, therefore the Veteran is no longer living on the street. For emergency financial assistance, please contact the United Way of Kansas. Dial 211 from any phone in Kansas.

Additional information for rental assistance is available through the following web site:

Comments

[seticat.livejournal.com]

Ah, yep. Approx 1/2 of the homeless in Idaho are vets. And pretty much to get anything from VA, you ahve to be in the system somehow. Which means you have to have a physical copy of your DD-214 [discharge papers] - the full version with the type of discharge listed at the bottom. Which is almost impossible to get if you can't go online to order it or have an address to have it mailed to when it finially shows up in about 4-8 weeks.

Now picture this if you have no internet access - heck if you have no transpotation at all.

Here's the blip from the va.gov site on the HUD/VASH program:
"HUD-VASH

The Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Veterans Affairs Supported Housing (HUD-VASH) Program provides permanent housing and ongoing case management treatment services for homeless Veterans who require these supports to live independently. HUD has allocated over 20,000 “Housing Choice” Section 8 vouchers to Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) throughout the country for eligible homeless Veterans. This program allows Veterans and their families to live in Veteran-selected apartment units. The vouchers are portable, allowing Veterans to live in communities where VA case management services can be provided. This program provides for our most vulnerable Veterans, and is especially helpful to Veterans with families, women Veterans, recently returning Veterans and Veterans with disabilities. Evaluation of an earlier, similar program demonstrated that most Veteran participants remained permanently housed."

http://www1.va.gov/homeless/page.cfm?pg=2

FNow note this little part:
HUD has allocated over 20,000 “Housing Choice” Section 8 vouchers to Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) throughout the country for eligible homeless Veterans.

20,000 for the entire US.

Right.

A spit in the wind.

There's no way to get an accurate count, but around here [Boise, ID area], the shelters are always full.

I am looking at...

[winterhart]

An agency application form for EIGHT Million in homelessness assistance... and none of the agencies I'm talking to know anything about it. Fun, ain't it?

And yes we went thru Hud/vash in 2008... but now the same team told us we have to be under court ordered eviction before they can help.

GEEZ

[burbler.livejournal.com]

*shakes head* I don't even know what to say to this. It's appalling! *hugs*