Homeless Vets on Veterans Day

Tomorrow, November 11, is Veterans Day. Tomorrow there will be over 100,000 vets living on the street with another 1.5 million at risk of being homeless. These veterans provided the rest of America with security; can't we return the favor?

America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, the Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, Afghanistan and Iraq, and the military’s anti-drug cultivation efforts in South America. Nearly half of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era. Two-thirds served our country for at least three years, and one-third were stationed in a war zone.

About 1.5 million other veterans are considered at risk of homelessness due to poverty, lack of support networks, and dismal living conditions in overcrowded or substandard housing.

Although flawless counts are impossible to come by – the transient nature of homeless populations presents a major difficulty – VA estimates that 107,000 veterans are homeless on any given night. Over the course of a year, approximately twice that many experience homelessness.

What can I do?

• Determine the need in your community. Visit with homeless veteran providers. Contact your mayor’s office for a list of providers, or search the NCHV database.
• Involve others.If you are not already part of an organization, align yourself with a few other people who are interested in attacking this issue.
• Participate in local homeless coalitions. Chances are, there is one in your community. If not, this could be the time to bring people together around this critical need.
• Make a donationto your local homeless veteran provider.
• Contact your elected officials. Discuss what is being done in your community for homeless veterans.

The Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) has founded a National Call Center for Homeless Veterans hotline to ensure that homeless Veterans or Veterans at-risk for homelessness have free, 24/7 access to trained counselors. 1-877-424-3838.

The fact that we give so much lip service to honoring our vets, how about we "honor" them with a place to live.

Information provided by the Veterans Administration and the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans

And Castles Made of Sand Melt into the Sea…Eventually

Shored Up, the new documentary about the barrier islands of the U.S., featuring Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Surfers, scientists, politicians and residents help bring us a birds' eye view of the beauty and danger of the living in these low-lying communities on our ocean's edge.

Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? In Long Beach Island, New Jersey and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, surfers, politicians, scientists and residents are racing to answer these questions. Beach engineering has been our only approach so far, but is there something else out there to be explored? Our development of the coastlines put us in a tough predicament, and it’s time to start looking for solutions.

 

And Castles Made of Sand Melt into the Sea…Eventually

Shored Up, the new documentary about the barrier islands of the U.S., featuring Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Surfers, scientists, politicians and residents help bring us a birds' eye view of the beauty and danger of the living in these low-lying communities on our ocean's edge.

Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? In Long Beach Island, New Jersey and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, surfers, politicians, scientists and residents are racing to answer these questions. Beach engineering has been our only approach so far, but is there something else out there to be explored? Our development of the coastlines put us in a tough predicament, and it’s time to start looking for solutions.

 

And Castles Made of Sand Melt into the Sea…Eventually

Shored Up, the new documentary about the barrier islands of the U.S., featuring Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Surfers, scientists, politicians and residents help bring us a birds' eye view of the beauty and danger of the living in these low-lying communities on our ocean's edge.

Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? In Long Beach Island, New Jersey and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, surfers, politicians, scientists and residents are racing to answer these questions. Beach engineering has been our only approach so far, but is there something else out there to be explored? Our development of the coastlines put us in a tough predicament, and it’s time to start looking for solutions.

 

And Castles Made of Sand Melt into the Sea…Eventually

Shored Up, the new documentary about the barrier islands of the U.S., featuring Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Surfers, scientists, politicians and residents help bring us a birds' eye view of the beauty and danger of the living in these low-lying communities on our ocean's edge.

 

Shored Up is a documentary that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land. What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities? Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? In Long Beach Island, New Jersey and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, surfers, politicians, scientists and residents are racing to answer these questions. Beach engineering has been our only approach so far, but is there something else out there to be explored? Our development of the coastlines put us in a tough predicament, and it’s time to start looking for solutions.