Homes For Our Heroes

GREENVILLE, N.C. - The Department of Veterans Affairs says each year they provide healthcare to almost 150,000 homeless veterans.

Yet they say in just over 3 years they will have all those homeless vets off the streets.

9 On Your Side's Rich Klindworth looked into this ambitious project and found out the VA isn't backing down from their goal.

The VA told me over and over again that the resources are there to help homeless vets get off the streets and into homes. As I looked into it, he found out they are making steps in the right direction.

“I'd sleep in parking garages, in the park, stuff like that,” said Ronnie Cooke, former homeless vet.

That was then but this is now.

Army veteran Ronnie Cooke said he was a homeless vet from 1987 until 2010, “I had a problem with drugs and I had no family to turn to.”

Cooke doesn't want to talk about it, but saID after an incident in 1981 while he was serving in the Army, he started to self-medicate with drugs which turned into a life on the streets with nowhere to turn, “I was ashamed of myself.  I was too ashamed of myself and I lost all of my self respect.  Couldn't face my family, couldn't face my kids.”

But last year, through the Veterans Affairs outreach program, Cooke was introduced to the Housing and Urban Development Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing voucher program, also known as HUD-VASH.

Basically, the homeless vet gets rental assistance with hands-on case management. Because the VA said more than 66% of all homeless vets have either mental illness or substance abuse problems or both.

HUD-VASH put a roof over Cooke's head and it's helping him get over his issues.

“I still have a long process to go but I feel comfortable that I can go out here and pay my own rent, pay my own light bill, you know, turn that key in the door, leave when I get ready and come when I get ready,” said Cooke.

“We want all veterans to know that there's services care and benefits available to them.  We want community members, family members that know any veteran that is homeless or at risk of being homeless to allow the VA to help those veterans intervene get them the care they have come to deserve through their service and get them matched up with all the services and benefits in which they are entitled,” said Pete Tillman, Public Affairs Officer Durham VA Medical Center.

While ending homelessness in vets isn't going to be fixed over night. Ronnie Cooke is living proof that the VA's programs can work if the vet wants the help. 

The HUD-VASH program can be called the "silver bullet" to ending homelessness.

The problem is that in some cases there aren't enough HUD-VASH vouchers to go around.

That being said, those with Veterans Affairs said there is plenty of help if the homeless vet seeks it.

“I think that it's an excellent program because it offers something some type of assistance to the vet to address the homelessness,” said Thelma Sephes, HUD Vash Case Manager.

You won't get too many people to dispute HUD-VASH case worker Sephes.

The HUD-VASH program through the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs gives the homeless vet housing assistance and helps the vet get through various issues, like mental illness and substance abuse issues.

Phylissa Belcher was in the Army for 8 years until she says she trusted the wrong people got into some trouble. She ended up spending time in jail.

“I became homeless after I got out of the military and everything working dead end jobs that wasn't enough to take care of myself and my 5 kids,” said Belcher. She sent her children to live with family while she looked for shelter. “I slept down at the town commons one night.  Another night I actually went into an abandoned house garage and slept. It was scary, scared some type of animal might come in there or somebody might come in there.  But surprisingly I made it.”

Now she's at the Greenville Community Shelter and taking computer classes at Miller-Mott.

The HUD-VASH program is something she has her eyes on, but it could be a long shot because there are only so many vouchers available in Pitt County.

A spokesperson for the VA says Pitt County could be getting 5 more vouchers.

But Marcella Perkins of the Greenville Community Shelter said that's nowhere near enough, “I think we need more vouchers. We might have a hundred or 200 vets out here that need to be housed.  It’s still not helping.  It helps a small portion but not the majority.”

Pete Tillman for the VA said they are working on getting more vouchers.

This year he said in the 26 counties of the Durham region, which includes counties here in the east, they started with 165 HUD-VASH vouchers. But since then, they've gotten 50 more due to the need.

He also said if the vouchers wouldn't be available, the VA has other programs to help get veterans off the streets, like their grant per-diem program that sets homeless vets up with transitional housing for up to 2 years.

“Anytime you go serve your country, and serve it well, you need to be rewarded, not only by a pin or whatever, take care of me when I get back to the us or wherever I’m from, just take care of me because I’ve served my country well,” said Perkins.

The VA said the best way for them to increase these programs for the homeless vets is for those vets to contact them so that they can see exact need.

One of the ways they are doing this is by passing out these plastic cards with a toll free number for homeless vets to call and get signed up.

So if you know of a homeless vet, have them call this number, 1-877-424-3838, so they can get started on the path to getting a roof back over their head.