Roseburg VA Needs Community’s Help to Find, Serve Homeless Veterans
3:32 AM · Dec 8, 2020(Tim Parrish-Roseburg VA) It is the holiday season, and temperatures have dropped in concert with the heavy clouds carrying rain across the cascade region. The stereotype of cold, wet, gray northwest winters is a true one, bringing gloom for many with no place to call home, a disheartening end to an already tragic year. For those with no place to lay their head in the weeks before the holidays, the prospect of another cold, wet night on the streets might be soul-crushing – but there is hope and help available for the homeless men and women who are proud to call themselves Veterans here. The Roseburg VA Health Care System is urging all in the community, Veterans and non-Veterans alike, to connect homeless and at-risk Veterans with the facility to take advantage of available resources and programs, including emergency housing, to help get them get off the street. “The weather is changing and it can become a dangerous, even life-threatening, situation for our Veterans who are homeless or chronically under-housed during the holiday season,” said Kevin Wagner, Homeless Program Coordinator with the Roseburg VA. “We want to find as many eligible Veterans as we can to help get them into safe, secure, warm temporary housing. The Homeless Veteran Program team here, which serves Coos, Curry, Lane and Douglas Counties in Oregon, and Del Norte County in California, have a great deal of experience and resources to help our Veterans who need housing.” Some 1,300 men and women Veterans are homeless on any given night in the state of Oregon according to some estimates. Most of those Veterans might be eligible for assistance and health care from the Roseburg VA – the problem is getting them in the door, according to Wagner. “The resources are here, and we have broad support from both government and private organizations that assist homeless and at-risk Veterans. But because many of these men and women have no fixed address, no way for us to contact them, it is hard to let them know we are here and can help,” said Wagner. “We work very well with advocates in the community, and our goal is to help as many folks as we can. No Veteran should have to face the prospect of a night on the streets or feel like no one can lend a hand.” The Roseburg VA’s Homeless Veterans Program is a conduit for homeless Veterans to temporary housing, social services, and health care. The Homeless Veterans Program is here to get as many homeless Veterans into shelter as possible – despite COVID-19, which has limited the availability of bed-space in some shelters, there are other options available for those who seek it. “If you are a Veteran and you are on the street, please know the Roseburg VA and the community are here to help you,” said Wagner. “Our goal is to reach and assist 100% of those who want assistance and are eligible, and we cannot do that alone. If people know a Veteran who is on the streets or is at risk of homelessness, please put them in contact with our team.” The Roseburg VA Homeless Veterans Program is available to assist in Douglas, Coos, Curry and Del Norte Counties – to reach them, call 541-440-1000, Ext. 40542. In Lane County, call 541-242-0445. Outside the Roseburg VA catchment area, the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at (877) 4AID-VET (877-424-3838) is also available. (Story by Tim Parish, Roseburg VA)