OPINION
As an American, you would think that taking care of our veterans and keeping them out of housing insecurity and homelessness would be top priorities for federal and state agencies.
But you would be wrong.
According to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), there are at least 41,000 homeless veterans currently suffering on the streets of our country.
But even that figure doesn’t really express the full scope of the problem because in addition to the 41,000 homeless veterans, there are at least one million more who are housing insecure — their housing situation is unstable, and they might easily lose what shelter they have.
A 2021 study found that our military service members and veterans are four times as likely to die by suicide as in battle.
When veterans return home, they’re still staring down the barrel of a gun, whether that be a literal gun in a suicide attempt or the threats posed by PTSD, mental health issues, depression, physical injuries, addiction, or simply the concern of aging in place.
Without a safe, secure place to lay their head at night, how can a veteran address their challenges and start to thrive? The short answer is, they can’t.
Many of us are aware of the way that mental health challenges can lead to housing insecurity. Fewer realize that housing insecurity, in turn, exacerbates mental health problems.
It’s a vicious cycle. One that will continue unless we, as Americans, demand change.
This writer once led a charity, HAVEN Women, dedicated to helping female veterans transition out of homelessness.
Our programs focused on equipping these women with essential life skills to help them regain stability.
However, after completing our program, many were placed into deplorable housing conditions by the same government agencies tasked with providing permanent housing solutions.
These unsafe, drug-addled buildings are far from supportive environments for veterans recovering from addiction or mental health challenges, and they increase the risk of relapse.
It’s devastating to witness our government putting these brave individuals through the horrors of war, only to abandon them to such dire living conditions.
The government’s inability to provide safe and respectable housing for our nation’s heroes is completely unacceptable.
Somehow, the federal and state government can find money for a long list of worthless programs like the $6 million to boost Egyptian tourism, the $169 million worth of military equipment that was wasted by being left outside this year, or $230 million spent on the Gaza Pier, which lasted only 22 days.
Yet they can’t find any money for the men and women who put their lives on the line for the sake of our nation.
When it comes to veteran housing, the coffers are dry.
There is no money, no ability, no volition, leaving our heroes trapped in a cycle of housing insecurity that can ultimately lead them back to homelessness.
We could have built an entire 47-unit apartment community for our suffering veterans with the $6 million given to Egypt alone.
How do I know this?
Because I’ve done it.
My charity, Veterans Villages, constructed an apartment building in Philadelphia for just $6 million, all funded privately because the government did not have "funding resources" for such a project.
The Veterans Village community offers safe, permanent, and dignified Affordable Housing for our veterans, significantly impacting their lives.
One veteran shared with me that he intends to spend his final days there because he feels the people at the Village are like family, and thanks to our partner, Homes for Veterans, he can age in place knowing he will not have to look for alternative shelter.
Several Vietnam veteran residents have told me that this is the first place they’ve felt truly safe and respected in decades.
Our residents range from early 30's to mid-70’s, male and female alike, but their common thread is their service to our country, and at Veterans Village, finally receiving the care and compassion they have earned.
But one community is not enough.
We need to build hundreds more Veterans Villages across the country. We have the expertise and determination to make it happen, even if the government doesn’t.
We have partners who bring services and programs to the table to support our housing initiatives. It will require broad, grass-roots support to succeed.
First, we need every day Americans to not only get involved, but also to advocate with their representatives in government that the housing needs of our nation’s warriors must take precedence over spending taxpayer-funded projects and unnecessary government initiatives, like training DHS Employees to "Be Their Authentic Selves."
Enough is enough.
If government is unable, unwilling, or simply too inefficient to provide housing for veterans, we must act ourselves through partnerships with the private sector.
Our decisive efforts might even prompt federal and state agencies to finally take notice.
Our service members fought for us; now it’s our turn to fight for them.
Dana Spain, is president of the Veteran's Village Board (veteransvillages.org), whose goal is to provide high-quality, respectful housing for working families, veterans, seniors, and others.