Stand Down just received its largest grant ever to help prevent veteran homelessness in Palm Beach County. The Lake Worth-based organization, which helps homeless and at-risk veterans and their families, was awarded $982,124 from the Department of Veterans Affairs under the Supportive Service for Veteran Families (SSVF) program.
Congresswoman Lois Frankel joined Stand Down founder and executive director Roy Foster, board members and veterans at Stand Down House on Sept. 16 to announce the grant. Stand Down House, which provides transitional housing for male veterans is one of the programs that will benefit from the grant.
“Along with housing, there are several layers to restoring a veteran and/or their family to stability,” Foster said. “Our programs help with job readiness and placement, childcare, transportation, financial planning and other support services to keep homelessness from occurring or recurring.”
Richard Rivers said he is proof that the programs work. The 58-year-old army veteran arrived at Stand Down House with just the clothes on his back. At Stand Down House, Rivers received case management and assistance to obtain a license in water and wastewater management. When he graduated, the SSVF program provided the deposits and furnishings for Rivers’ new apartment.
Nearly two years later, Rivers said, “Life is pretty good, but if something goes wrong, I know where to turn. The family at Stand Down and the VA are a big part of my support system.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs awarded $300 million in SSVF grants to 275 nonprofits this year to help provide crucial services to prevent homelessness for veterans and their families.
For more info., visit www.standown.org.
ABOVE: Congresswoman Lois Frankel presents a check to Roy Foster, founder and executive director of Stand Down House.
