VETERANS PLACE INC
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Mission Statement
The Mission of Veterans’ Place, Inc. The Veterans’ Place is a community-based, non-profit, 22 bed, and substance free, transitional housing program located in central Vermont, dedicated to reducing the Vermont Veterans homeless population. TVPI provides both secure and sober housing along with supportive services and programs to homeless veterans. TVPI offers ‘a hand-up, not a hand-out.’ TVPI works in conjunction with the Veterans Medical Facility in White River Junction, along with other Veterans facilities and state agencies around Vermont to provide a coordinated effort to offer affordable housing, nutritional meals, substance abuse treatment, mental health treatment, along with employment and volunteer placement assistance, among other supportive services. TVPI is capable of housing up to twenty-two homeless veterans. The facility has twelve single rooms and seven double rooms. TVPI has a fifteen passenger van and a six passenger van for transporting residents to the VAMC in White River Junction and other supportive service providers. TVPI is fully accessible for disabled individuals. Participants must help with assigned household chores; pay nominal rent (30% of which is returned upon successful completion of the program); work diligently on self-improvement and professional development, including finding employment and volunteering in local communities; while maintaining a healthy, sober lifestyle. In return, participants may stay up to two years in this structured program and utilize TVPI as a stepping-stone toward fulfilling their potential and transitioning to independent living.
About This Cause
The Veterans Place, Inc. (TVPI) has provided high quality supportive housing services to homeless veterans in Northern New England for over a decade. We are requesting continued VA Per Diem Only grant support for three housing models to help meet the current needs of homeless veterans in our region: 1) Service Intensive Housing for 10 beds; 2) Bridge Housing for 5 beds; 3) Hospital to Housing for 7 beds. These vital services are co-located in a supervised, supportive, communal living setting for veterans located in Northfield, Vermont. TVPI collaborates closely with the Veterans Administration and all major Vermont housing and social service agencies in an effort to deliver comprehensive, integrated services needed to help homeless veterans transition to stable, permanent housing as quickly as possible. This includes, but is not limited to: the Statewide Coordinated Entry System; Vermont’s Continuum of Care (COC), both locally and statewide; the VT State Veterans Committee on Ending Homelessness; HUD Vash; SSVF; Pathways to Housing in Vermont and New Hampshire; VT Economic Services; Voc Rehab Vermont; Turning Points; AA/NA; and local and statewide housing authorities. By partnering with WRJ VAMC and these agencies, TVPI provides a wide range of support services to Veterans to meet their needs and remove barriers to achieving our goal of zero functional homelessness for area veterans. Over the last decade, our program has on average met or exceeded key Veterans Affairs (VA) Benchmarks. Our TVPI residents have historically transitioned at or above the VA’s benchmarks for independent housing and employment at discharge, and we have traditionally outperformed the benchmark for negative discharges. An important part of our success has been creating a stable, supportive environment in which formerly homeless veterans can successfully address the many issues that have contributed to past difficulties. Our expertise and extensive experience assisting Vets struggling with substance abuse issues has been crucial, especially since those issues play a major role in chronic homelessness in Northern New England where opioid abuse, including heroin addiction, has soared in recent years, as well as our historically high rates of alcohol abuse. Washington County, Vermont, where TVPI is located, has the highest rate of homeless Veterans in the state. TVPI has helped many Vets successfully overcome drug and alcohol abuse by creating a structured environment with clearly defined rules and expectations, while also maintaining an individualized approach with flexibility for Vets who experience relapse, a common part of the recovery process. Over the past 10 years, our case management staff has gained valuable experience and specialized training in working with people struggling with addiction. Case managers are trained to recognize symptoms of trauma or anxiety that might be underlying and driving substance use, and are sensitive to the lived experiences of Veterans. This sensitivity helps avoid triggering traumatic impacts. Both of our case managers are certified substance counselors. Our program is one of the few, if only, transitional housing programs in the region that has the experience and willingness to welcome homeless Veterans coming out of detox, and provide recovering veterans with a safe haven while waiting several weeks to enter the Substance Abuse Recovery and Rehabilitation Treatment Program (SARRTP) at the White River Junction Veterans Administration Medical Center (VAMC), or transitioning out of the SARRTP program. TVPI is able to accept Vets discharged from the hospital or rehab as long as their medical and personal care needs do not exceed the ability of our staff, but be provided supplemental rehabilitation care by an organization such as Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice (CVHHH), the regional visiting nurse association, or other healthcare organization. Our home is fully handicapped accessible, including an elevator accessing all three flours. Each resident at our facility has an individualized plan to help them meet their goals for ending homelessness. This plan focuses on a variety of areas, including: access to medical and mental health care; substance abuse counseling and support programs; transportation to the VA for care; supports needed for finding employment and/or increasing income through disability; and supports necessary for identifying and maintaining permanent housing. TVPI case managers and our Housing Specialist work closely with each resident to help him meet personal goals. Through case management, we also help Veterans resolve housing, legal and debt issues, and increase their income at discharge through increased disability support and/or employment. Our program is unique in that we provide all residents with access to food at no cost, and provide cooked dinners seven days a week (weekend dinners are cooked by the residents themselves). Residents also have access to commercial-grade laundry facilities and a wide range of activities, also at no cost. These services help build community as residents plan weekend meals together, enjoy each other’s company daily, and participate in shared chores and group activities. TVPI has a new onsite professionally equipped Wellness center, with options of providing as needed: yoga, meditation, and mindfulness classes.