Bay Pines VA Healthcare System

Editorial: Congratulations to Charlotte County for Effectively Ending Veteran Homelessness

April 21, 2017

(Note: This letter to the editor was published in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and the Port Charlotte Herald on April 21, 2017)

Dear Editor,

I write to you today to publicly congratulate the many leaders and organizations of Charlotte County for their commitment to ending Veteran homelessness. Because of their tireless efforts in partnership with the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, the community is one of four Continuums of Care in the state of Florida, and one of 42 communities across the country, that have effectively ended Veteran homelessness. This is a tremendous accomplishment, and one that must be recognized and celebrated.

Within the area served by the Charlotte County Continuum of Care, our healthcare system currently serves 113 Veterans who previously struggled with homelessness. All of these Veterans are currently receiving housing support and health care services through our various programs in collaboration with community providers.

Strong partnerships like those between our healthcare system and the many individuals and organizations in Charlotte County have been vital to our shared success in eliminating Veteran homelessness across southwest Florida. In 2016 alone, we served nearly 5,500 homeless Veterans or those at risk across our service area which includes the Florida counties of Charlotte, Collier, Desoto, Hardee, Highlands, Lee, Manatee, Pinellas and Sarasota. We have several major programs dedicated to ending homelessness among Veterans to include the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – VA Supportive Housing (VASH) program; Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) program, Grant and Per Diem (GPD) program, Safe Haven, Supportive Services for Veterans and Families (SSVF), and VA contracted Community Emergency Residential Service beds. With the support of these programs, most notably HUD-VASH, nearly 2,200 Veterans were permanently housed in 2016.

Nationally, more than 360,000 Veterans and their family members have been permanently housed, rapidly re-housed, or prevented from falling into homelessness due to systematic and collaborative efforts between VA and community partners to coordinate services and focus resources towards the goal of ending Veteran homelessness. Charlotte County is a great example of this work.

As a community, our vision and progress is evident in our ability to achieve this important goal. However, our work is by no means done. The infrastructure and systems we have built will require continued attention and adaptation to meet the changing needs of this community and the Veterans we have the privilege to serve. We must recognize that ending Veteran homelessness is not a single event in time, but continues with follow-on efforts beyond today. It is now our responsibility to share our lessons and experiences with other communities, so that ending Veteran homelessness can be a goal achieved across our great Nation.

Sincerely,

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