# DLA surplus helping lower vet homelessness rates

/ Published Dec. 7, 2022
BATTLE CREEK, Mich., 
***This is the third and final part of a story series on homeless veteran outreach and surplus property.***

Vets shuffle along in a row, filling crisp Army assault packs with free bounty plucked from surplus goods tables while, like a carnival barker, Reggie Howard by turns beckons them to partake, directs the flow of traffic and reminds them to leave some treasure for those coming up behind them.

“They all love their memories of their time in service,” Howard said of veteran stand down attendees. “So, whether it’s something they used at that time, or if it’s just something they can use now, it’s just so great for them, when you see them get a pair of shoes, or you see them get an Army t-shirt or something, and you see it just reminds them of serving. They’ll tell you all about it.”  

                Volunteer Chris Reimer hands out boots during the 2022 Chicago veterans stand down. Reimer, a lead patient counselor with a medicinal cannabis company, said he and several colleagues volunteered to assist during the stand down through the Chicago Food Depository. “We just wanted to give something back,” he said. Thousands of volunteers step up around the country annually to execute hundreds of veteran outreach events.                            220623-D-GV919-238                            Volunteer Chris Reimer hands out boots during the 2022 Chicago veterans stand down. Reimer, a lead patient counselor with a medicinal cannabis company, said he and several colleagues volunteered to assist during the stand down through the Chicago Food Depository. “We just wanted to give something back,” he said. Thousands of volunteers step up around the country annually to execute hundreds of veteran outreach events.            SHARE IMAGE:Download ImageImage DetailsPhoto By: Jake JoyVIRIN: 220623-D-GV919-238Howard began his career with the Department of Veterans Affairs in Battle Creek, Michigan, in 2008. It’s the home of Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services, from where about $10 million in military surplus personal property was directed for transfer from field sites to be given away at VA stand down events in fiscal 2022.  

In a federal role called peer specialist, Howard said he handles the cases of up to 50 veterans at a time and assists them in a variety of ways, including with housing searches, appointment scheduling, transportation questions, recovery meeting attendance, and generally helping them “at any level.”

Howard said he was there when his hometown of Grand Rapids began its own veteran stand down for the homeless and at-risk in 2008, and he stands by its impact and importance. 

“One of the greatest things – the ones that were homeless in the beginning,” Howard said. “You see them come back to let people know ‘you can do it, they did it for me.’ You hear veterans share stories. You see veterans working who were once homeless vets. You see them here, helping clean up, saying ‘now I can give back. I can take time and help my fellow vets because I remember when they helped me.’”

                Amanda Briggs, a Grand Rapids-area Veterans Affairs social worker team lead, mans a table of surplus military property she ordered from DLA Disposition Services during the city’s veteran stand down in 2022. “The surplus, realistically, is the biggest draw to a stand down,” Briggs said, noting that vets seemed to have “this wonderful nostalgia” about the items and their military service.                            220811-D-GV919-678                            Amanda Briggs, a Grand Rapids-area Veterans Affairs social worker team lead, mans a table of surplus military property she ordered from DLA Disposition Services during the city’s veteran stand down in 2022. “The surplus, realistically, is the biggest draw to a stand down,” Briggs said, noting that vets seemed to have “this wonderful nostalgia” about the items and their military service.            SHARE IMAGE:Download ImageImage DetailsPhoto By: Jake JoyVIRIN: 220811-D-GV919-678Homelessness among U.S. veterans is not a new thing, but the situation is improving. It was documented during the Reconstruction Era, after the U.S. Civil War. In the 1930s, after the first World War, there were as many as 250,000 veterans on the street, and during the Truman presidency there were an estimated 100,000 homeless veterans just in Chicago, according to studies on housing reform efforts during the era. The peak of homelessness in the U.S. is generally considered to have taken place after the Vietnam War, in the 1980s, and Senate hearings from the time pegged the number of homeless veterans at 300,000 in 1987. Amazingly, the number today may be ten times smaller.

Veteran homelessness was swamping Chicago when Jeanne Douglas adopted the stand down concept there in 1993, jumping on a trend began by a group of San Diego vets just a handful of years prior. Douglas ended up managing stand downs in the Windy City for 25 years.

“In the beginning, we didn’t even understand what we were getting into,” said Douglas, who was also responsible for requesting surplus military property for the events until 2014. 

The now-retired VA outreach specialist said many Vietnam-era veterans generally distrusted the government and the stand down concept offered a potential positive avenue to their acceptance of assistance services. 

“When we started, veteran homelessness was a national disgrace,” Douglas said. “We’d send a bus through the streets of downtown and just load veterans on it because we knew where they were. They’d enjoy the day and the generosity of it, and once they had that connection there, they’d come back.”  

                Former Air Force Fire Protective Specialist John Lofton said he rode a bicycle clear across Grand Rapids, Michigan, to take part in the 2022 veterans stand down. Lofton, who said he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and was still recovering from Veterans Affairs-provided eye surgery, loaded up a couple of bags full of surplus military clothing, saying the event was “really nice for us.”                            220811-D-GV919-998                            Former Air Force Fire Protective Specialist John Lofton said he rode a bicycle clear across Grand Rapids, Michigan, to take part in the 2022 veterans stand down. Lofton, who said he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and was still recovering from Veterans Affairs-provided eye surgery, loaded up a couple of bags full of surplus military clothing, saying the event was “really nice for us.”            SHARE IMAGE:Download ImageImage DetailsPhoto By: Jake JoyVIRIN: 220811-D-GV919-998Paul Bezazian was there at the start. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Illinois state director for homeless veteran outreach said he remembers huge numbers of vets brought in off the street for an overnight stay in a massive National Guard armory, with hot showers and a fish fry, ice cream, bingo and giveaways brought in by a local preacher.

“The planning committee would be there three whole days to execute it,” said Bezazian, who is still volunteering at the Chicago stand down and praised his community’s efforts for the steadily shrinking numbers of veterans without shelter.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development monitors homelessness via a “Point In Time,” or PIT Count conducted each January. According to HUD’s most recent count, about 20,000 veterans were experiencing “sheltered homelessness,” meaning they resided in transitional housing, shelters or other supportive settings. Another 13,500 were unsheltered and living in places not meant for human habitation like cars, abandoned buildings, parks and sidewalks. The snapshot represents a 55% reduction in veteran homelessness since 2010.

“In Chicago, on a January day when it’s zero degrees, people want a home,” said Don Donahue, an outreach specialist who said he has personally seen vets go from sleeping in a field to living in a home. “Sometimes, it’s just a matter of helping them get there by meeting them where they’re at so they can realize their potential and where they could be.” 

                Loading up on military surplus property and then loading up on a hearty lunch – two of the standard traits of veteran stand downs like the Grand Rapids event held in 2022. Former Army Field Wireman Gregory Smith picnics with fellow attendees in August. Smith reminisced about his service days with some fellow soldiers and commented on how nice the event was and how “everything’s free.”                            220811-D-GV919-012                            Loading up on military surplus property and then loading up on a hearty lunch – two of the standard traits of veteran stand downs like the Grand Rapids event held in 2022. Former Army Field Wireman Gregory Smith picnics with fellow attendees in August. Smith reminisced about his service days with some fellow soldiers and commented on how nice the event was and how “everything’s free.”            SHARE IMAGE:Download ImageImage DetailsPhoto By: Jake JoyVIRIN: 220811-D-GV919-0124Donahue took over the surplus property ordering from DLA for the Chicago stand down eight years ago and, with limited storage space, stocks up on personal property as space allows to provide to walk-in vets needing assistance throughout the year. He said the city’s efforts and initiatives are paying off, with “very good” outcomes in the area, including significant drops in suburban homelessness. He said that in Cook County, which represents the core of Chicago, maybe 18 to 24 vets remain homeless at any given time and a “within reach” goal is to get that number down to a dozen, which he called “functional zero.”

For those that remain homeless, or in danger of it happening, outreach personnel remain convinced that the surplus items from DLA provide a physical calling card – like a refrigerator magnet with the plumber’s phone number for when a pipe bursts.

“A rucksack – maybe that’s what got them here,” said Rachel Wustman, the Kent County Community Services Outreach Specialist who organized the 2022 Grand Rapids veterans stand down. “But then, maybe they used the resources. That’s the hope. Maybe it’s nice now. Maybe they don’t need their heat on, but when it gets colder, maybe they can’t afford to have their heat on. Well, come to Kent County Veterans Services and we’ll help.”

Last month, HUD released a statement saying the drop in veteran homelessness from January 2020 to January 2022 was the largest of the past five years.

                Veteran homelessness has dropped 55% since 2010, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Veterans Affairs social workers and outreach specialists point to events like annual veterans stand downs, and the millions of dollars in military surplus property received from the Defense Logistics Agency each year as effective tools to engage and assist at-risk vets.                            220624-D-GV919-2389                            Veteran homelessness has dropped 55% since 2010, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Veterans Affairs social workers and outreach specialists point to events like annual veterans stand downs, and the millions of dollars in military surplus property received from the Defense Logistics Agency each year as effective tools to engage and assist at-risk vets.            SHARE IMAGE:Download ImageImage DetailsPhoto By: Jake JoyVIRIN: 220624-D-GV919-2389“All veterans deserve to have what they need to lead healthy, safe, and successful lives – that starts with a place to call home,” said HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge. 

At ground level, Howard said he received “so many” calls from Grand Rapids veterans during the pandemic, wondering when the next stand down would be, and he was glad to finally give them an August date for the 2022 event.

“It’s just an awesome way to help, especially for me,” said Howard, a former sailor who was himself a homeless veteran prior to attending a substance abuse program at the Battle Creek VA facility in 2007. “I’ve been on both sides of it. It’s so great to be able to see veterans and cheer them on and give them a positive outlook. When they see me, they remember me and they’re like ‘hey, if that guy can do it, I can do it.’”

***The VA offers a searchable database of stand downs they support. Events are added to the list on a rolling basis and volunteer opportunities abound.***