Bougainvillea and star jasmine vines weave through the white wrought-iron fence. Rose bushes are neatly pruned, and the American and POW-MIA flags fly from a 20-foot pole in the neatly mowed lawn. With new windows and fresh paint, these three apartment buildings stand out from the others in the Crown Heights neighborhood behind Oceanside High School.
The Oceanside Veterans Transitional Housing complex, a project of Interfaith Community Services, improved not only the look of the neighborhood, but also the lives of its residents.
Opened in July 2008, the complex provides 72 homeless veterans, men and women, with a place to live for up to two years. Interfaith also operates a sister facility in Escondido.
"This is hand up, not a hand out," says John Stryker Meyer, associate director for veterans outreach at Interfaith and himself a Vietnam veteran.
Over the past year, the housing programs have provided not only shelter for nearly 300 local homeless veterans, but also treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and substance abuse, job training, employment services and much more.
As Meyer shared stories of how Interfaith's programs have helped veterans get back on their feet, I was struck by how easy it has been for veterans to fall between the cracks. It's a heartbreaking fact that the homeless are the fastest-growing sector of our population, with veterans accounting for one-third of all homeless adults in America.
Though exact numbers are impossible to collect, the Veterans Administration estimates that 131,000 veterans nationwide are homeless on any given night, and twice as many experience homelessness sometime throughout the year.
The VA finds these numbers unacceptable, and at a summit in November, pledged to combat veterans' homelessness by establishing a national "zero tolerance" policy and implementing a five-year plan to end homelessness among veterans.
The summit emphasized what Interfaith has long known: Community and local faith-based groups, partnered with veterans service organizations and federal, state and local governments, are the first and best line of defense in eliminating homelessness.
Interfaith also understands the critical need for community safety nets to prevent homelessness by providing services to low-income veteran and non-veteran families who are at risk of being homeless.
Sadly, as a sign of these tough times, Interfaith overall has experienced a nearly 60 percent increase in demand for services and a 53 percent decrease in donations.
Interfaith's programs and volunteers vitalize our communities. But make no mistake; each of us has an opportunity to be part of its safety net. Each of us can be the hand up.
To learn more about its programs, go to www.interfaithservices.org.
GAIL CHATFIELD writes from San Diego. Contact her at my500words@yahoo.com.
