UPDATE Central Florida Homeless Veterans

The run around just ended. There is more information coming but the reason for the lack of knowledge and answers about our homeless veterans has just been cleared up by Dr. Shea of the Orlando VA Hospital and the DOM. The program at the VA is fairly new and has not received the media attention it justly deserves.

They have a facility separate from the nursing home they also operate. They have 60 beds and they offer rehabilitation, health and dental, mental health care and all support services to take our veterans from living on the streets or the woods to being self sufficient. We all know what these guys are like. It is very hard for them to seek help. That's one of the reasons Orlando is doing another Stand Down operation.

There are things you can do to help them get back on their feet. Aside from general donations that cover clothing for job offers and tools for tradesman, they also need donations for bus passes to get to and from job interviews and jobs, as well as AA meetings and church services. They need phone cards so they can call connect back with people they have not had the ability to speak to in a long time. You can specify what you want your donations to go to provide them with.

Donations can be sent to
Sandra Boza
Volunteer Services
Orlando VA Hospital
5201 Raymond St
Orlando FL 32083

Keep in mind you can also adopt a veteran when they are ready to go into housing on their own by donating what they need. This could be anything from a clock radio, to an iron to a coffee pot. You can get more information by calling 407-629-1599 ext 1727.

One other interesting point Dr. Shea raised is that people tend to think they do not take in female homeless veterans but they do. They understand the unique problems females face above and beyond the traumas males experience. From sexual assaults straight down the line to all issues our female veterans need help with, they are there and ready to help. Each one is provided with a safe room of their own and a key to help them feel safe and cared for.

There is a great need across this country and there needs to be expansion of all of these programs. This has never been more apparent than in recent weeks with the media reporting on what the rest of us should have been too aware of. All of these programs are done for two reasons. The first reason is love and the second reason is because our veterans were willing to risk all for all of us.

I know I complain the most about the VA, but that is the bureaucratic end and you have never heard me once complain about the people who work for the VA. They could all be making a lot more money working in the private sector. Face it, rehabs alone charge thousands a month for inpatients. The VA cannot compete with the money they could be getting from private facilities, but they do what they do for the veterans and to them, that is priceless. ( I think they're all underpaid and over-worked but that is besides the point.)

So what is a veteran worth to you these days? When the last protest happened in downtown Orlando, there were about 3,000 people gathered together to end the occupation of Iraq along with 100 supporting what has been done in Iraq. Both sides came out in the rain and spent hours that afternoon waiting to do what their hearts told them was the right thing to do. Both sides did it because they love the troops, but go about it different ways. Think about the effort all of those participating made just to be there for one afternoon. Now think about what all these people supporting the DOM and our homeless veterans can make for the homeless veterans Central Florida has today. If we do nothing then tomorrow or next year when there are more of them, we will have no excuse for not doing something about it today.

Because of the recent media reports more people are aware most are suffering from PTSD and self medicating with drugs and alcohol. They end up homeless for lot of reasons but that is the biggest one. What are you willing to do for a combat wounded veteran? If you think small donations don't matter then think of what it means to a veteran who pulls out a bus pass to go where they could not go without it. Or to a veteran with a phone card able to call his/her family they lost all contact with. Think of what those tiny donations end up meaning to them.

In Central Florida there is at least one church on every major street. Think about the message Christ gave to take care of the poor and needy along with what he said about there is no greater act than to be willing to lay down your life for your friends. Can there be anything more charitable than for a church to establish a donation fund for their congregations to set aside donations for them? Imagine what kind of message of the love of Christ you would be delivering for the DOM to receive donations for these veterans coming from Christian love for them.

There are wondrous things to be accomplished but it takes action and awareness. It takes someone who really cares and wants to do something for them. This is a place to start.

Over the next few days as more information comes in, I'll post it here. Until then, take a look at the change you have set aside. Go to your CoinStar and then write a check for the pocket change you have. I bet it adds up to several bus trips for them. The next thing you can do is call the Orlando Sentinel and tell them to get on the ball about reporting on the DOM. If someone like me who has been doing this for 25 years such a hard time finding out information, the people who need it will have an even harder time. It's time for the media to do some good reporting that can make a difference.

Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington