CRISIS CHRONICLED: Veteran homelessness increasing - News

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Nov. 08, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

CRISIS CHRONICLED: Veteran homelessness increasing

Nevada ranks fifth in nation for housing crunch

By LYNNETTE CURTIS
REVIEW-JOURNAL

HOMELESS VETERANS

Highest rate of homeless veterans

District of Columbia -- 7.5%
Louisiana -- 3.2%
California -- 2.2%
Missouri -- 2.1%
Nevada -- 1.9%

Highest rate of veterans with severe housing cost burden*

District of Columbia -- 6.4%
Hawaii -- 4.1%
Nevada -- 3.5%
Rhode Island -- 3.3%
California -- 3.4%
*Paying more than 50 percent of their income toward housing.

Source: American Community Survey 2005

ON THE WEB

National Alliance to End Homelessness

Veterans Affairs Department

U.S. Vets

U.S. Air Force veteran Earl Sanders, 47, talks about life at U.S. Vets, a shelter for homeless veterans.
Photo by John Gurzinski.

It's no surprise to U.S. Air Force veteran Earl Sanders that, according to a report to be released today, Nevada has the fifth highest rate of homelessness among veterans in the United States.

After all, he said, Nevada is a state full of habit-forming vices: gambling, drinking, drugs. And veterans like him are particularly vulnerable.

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"We have unique problems, and we carry a lot of baggage," said the 47-year-old who lives in a Las Vegas shelter for homeless vets.

He added, "You can lose your job, your home, your family in the blink of an eye."

The new report, "Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans," also states that Nevada has the third highest rate in the nation of veterans who are experiencing severe housing cost burden, defined as paying more than 50 percent of one's income toward rent or housing costs.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness, which compiled the report using data from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Census Bureau, says housing cost burden is the biggest predictor of homelessness.

The alliance is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group whose mission is to prevent and end homelessness in the United States.

Its report also didn't surprise many local service providers who work with homeless vets.

Veterans are homeless here for the same reason other people are, said Marsha Evans, program manager for the Department of Veterans Affairs' local Community Based Outreach Clinic.

"They come to work, and they believe there's a lot of opportunities here," she said.

What they don't know is that much of that work is minimum wage or exclusively part-time, said Greg Abernathy, a social worker with the clinic.

"If you already don't have any money and you have meager skills, you don't have the resources to get employment and you're not going to have a place to stay."

Abernathy added that there's a drastic shortage of affordable housing in Southern Nevada.

According to the report, about 4,700 homeless veterans lived in Nevada in 2006.

Locals who work with veterans, however, believe there are about that many homeless vets in Southern Nevada alone.

Nationally, 195,827 veterans were homeless on any given night in 2006, the report states.

While veterans make up only 11 percent of the general adult population, they now make up one in four homeless people in the United States.

It's not just a problem for older veterans, either. Those who work with vets say they're seeing young veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq becoming homeless.

"We see veterans from every conflict," Evans said. "We're starting to see an influx of Iraqi vets."

Veterans Affairs has identified 1,500 homeless veterans nationally from the current wars.

Some advocates for the homeless say such an early presence of veterans from those wars at shelters does not bode well for the future. It took roughly a decade for the lives of Vietnam vets to unravel to the point that they started showing up among the homeless. Advocates worry that intense and repeated deployments leave newer veterans particularly vulnerable.

The report blames veterans' homelessness on health issues, economic hardship and a lack of affordable housing -- the same things that factor into homelessness in the general population.

But veterans face additional challenges: prolonged separation from family and friends, skills that may not transfer to civilian jobs, and highly stressful training and occupational demands that can affect their personalities.

Sanders said many veterans block out painful experiences or choose to deal with them through substance abuse or other self-destructive behaviors.

The alliance says about 70 percent of homeless veterans suffer from substance abuse problems.

"We've been through war," Sanders said. "A lot of times there's little or no counseling available, and it's just a matter of time until things are going to come out. There's alcohol, gambling, and nightlife here, a combination of things that can send a guy over the edge."

Once there, he said, "there's not a lot of help for a guy."

Sanders, a former aircraft mechanic who served two tours of duty during Operation Desert Storm and was once stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, found himself in similar trouble in recent years.

"I was doing lots of gambling, drinking and drugs," he said. "Before I knew it I was living in weekly hotels and hanging out with raunchy people."

Sanders finally decided he needed help, and reached out to U.S. Vets, a local shelter that houses up to 268 men and is usually full.

"Now, life consists of getting up in the morning, praying, and taking care of my fellow vets," he said. "These guys are my family."

The national alliance recommends that 5,000 housing units be created per year for the next five years for the chronically homeless across the nation, and calls for that permanent housing to be linked to veterans' support systems. It also recommends funding an additional 20,000 housing vouchers exclusively for homeless veterans and creating a program that helps bridge the gap between income and rent.

Implementing the recommendations would cost billions of dollars.

Many of those who work with homeless vets feel investing more in the veterans' futures is important.

"These are vets who have served their country," Evans said. "We have to understand that at some point in time these individuals were highly functional and committed and then something happened."

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0285.

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Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. Herb wrote on November 08, 2007 03:56 PM: While I apprciate that these veterans served our country, that does not give them an excuse to become a drug addict. I have no compassion towards the homeless who are drug addicts. they should have led wholesome lives and not become a druggie. huh wrote on November 08, 2007 01:36 PM: yeah the army will take care of you,sure huh wrote on November 08, 2007 01:35 PM: come one come all join the army the'll take care of hear yea hear yea.. JH wrote on November 08, 2007 01:06 PM: It is not my job to fund helping the vets. I am just trying to stay alive in this world like other working stiffs. Take some of that $1 billion every 4 days they are spending in Iraq and help the vets. The Fed has plenty of money. As for football tickets, why would you want to pay hundreds of dollars to go to a game where you couldn't even see the players. And concerts? I wouldn't go across the street to see any (so-called) musicians of today. Again, it is the government's place to take care of our wounded soldiers, not mine. I am in level 7 pain 24/7, but I still have to work to care of myself. No one, especially not the government has given me shit. Maybe someday when my business starts earning a profit, I may donate some money. Just depends on who gets it. I remember years back when times were better, my wife and I used to donate $50 worth of groceries to the Salvation Army every week. Then one day when we were unloading the groceries, we say people dressed in pro sports stadium coats and $150 tennis shoes picking up the groceries off the shelf. That's when we said the hell with helping them. They are in better financial condition than we are. joe wrote on November 08, 2007 12:34 PM: Any idiot who has served in any war besides WW II is an idiot. The country uses you for their purpose then throws you out on the street. These volunteers who are in Iraq now. You are being used by the oil industry and making Bush & Cheneys friends rich in the process. You are fools to go die for oil. I'm even a Republican & I'm saying this. I'm sure the VA will take care of you in 5,10,20 years from now. I am tired of seeing Vietnam vets who are homeless & the govt doesn't give 1 bit about them. My kids will never serve in the military. Leave it to the losers of society who want glory join. Jodi wrote on November 08, 2007 08:32 AM: So JH- what are you going to do? Are you going keep buying tickets to football games and concerts; or will you donate that money and perhaps a bit of time to US Vets? I'm not poking at you in particular, but at everyone who agrees that it's a shame the way veteran's are treated, but they themselves do nothing aleviate the problem. Lot's of us write our own poetic responses to articles in this paper and then just go back to the entertainment pages to see what happening with Britney and Paris and whoever else. I say if we are going to cry injustice!! we need to get our butts down to the shelters and care centers with some supplies and a few hours to sit and talk to those who could use our attention. Fred from Greenfield wrote on November 08, 2007 07:54 AM: What society do not realize is that "you are what you think." Think rich and you will wind up rich. Think negative and you will wind up a downer. So simply and yet no one what to believe this because than they have to admit that the only way out is by thinking positive and that the only one that is going to help them is their self. It works !! JH wrote on November 08, 2007 06:57 AM: These people are the real heroes in this country. Look how they are treated in comparison to sports figures and alcoholic actresses. What a shame. These are the people that make your freedom possible. They deserve the top shelf. Wlliam T Frank wrote on November 08, 2007 05:17 AM: Drinking, gambling and drugs cannot be blamed on the military! How many of these vets never served outside CONUS? The brush used to paint the military as guilty for the entire vet homeless problem is far too broad in this "story". As a Vietnam vet who had my share of nasty experiences, I will admit its tough, but the make-up of the person and his/er willingness to play victim is the real story that belongs here. Toughen up brothers! Get off the bottom, drop the crap and dont let'em keep you down