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SOUTH BAY STAND DOWN TO BENEFIT HOMELESS

VETERANS -- "It's going to feel like a nice retreat for these

guys. It's their chance to come off the front line and

get the resources they need for three days."

 

 

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Stand Down to benefit homeless veterans

 

Two-hundred homeless war veterans will gather at a military-style encampment in Boulder Creek to receive aid from the Department of Veterans Affairs next month.

The first-year South Bay Stand Down, which will be at the Boulder Creek Scout Reservation on Sept. 8 through 10, is an event to reduce barriers that homeless veterans face when trying to find housing and employment.

“It’s a way to try to get them back in the mainstream,” said Ken Burke, the county’s veterans services officer.

Medical care and services, legal help, dental care, psychological help, help with housing and even an art therapy booth will help the struggling vets.

Many veterans have misdemeanor criminal records that prevent them from finding work, Burke said. Legal help for these veterans will be available from Santa Cruz and Santa Clara officials to help clear up infractions.

“It’s going to feel like a nice retreat for these guys,” said Kate Severin, who is coordinating the event for the VA. “It’s their chance to come off the front line and get the resources they need for three days.”

The event, funded by the VA Palo Alto Health Care System with help from a number of nonprofit agencies and the state, is still looking for volunteers.

Organizers need volunteers to help with food preparation, setup and takedown at the beginning and end of the event and navigators to help individual vets find the services they need, Severin said.

According to a National Coalition for Homeless Veterans report, there were nearly 50,000 homeless vets in California in 2005.

In Santa Cruz County, there are as many as 2,000 marginally housed veterans, Burke said.

The first Stand Down event was in 1988, and the concept has caught on across the United States. There have been similar events in the East Bay, and the VA plans to rotate annually among Boulder Creek and South Bay sites, Severin said.

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Larry Scott  --