St. Vincent de Paul | Louisville

From WDRB-Fox41 News, Jan. 28, 2011

By Valerie Chinn,  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Louisville, KY (WDRB-TV) Hundreds of veterans in Kentucky are homeless, and more than 300 live in Louisville..

Lack of affordable housing, substance abuse and mental illness are just some of the causes of homelessness, but work is being done to find veterans permanent homes.

Rob Greider is a resident at St. Vincent De Paul. He became homeless after his divorce and says he's hoping to reconnect with his family and three children. At St. Vincent de Paul, he has his own bedroom.  "It's my own room," he says. "It's not very big, but for a homeless veteran, it's the next best step to trying to get out." Greider is a veteran who served in the U.S. Army.

He says, "When I became homeless, I was scared to death. I was in the military for 14 years and being homeless I was terrified."  Greider is one of about 320 homeless veterans in Louisville.

The Robley Rex VA Medical Center held a Homeless Veterans Summit on Friday to talk about its efforts to end homelessness. The VA is offering permanent supportive housing and is conducting outreach through jails, court-systems, and police. But the VA says more can be done in the community.

Todd Dedas, the Healthcare for Homeless Veterans Coordinator at the VA Medical Center, says other agencies can definitely help the cause. He says, "They can help us with issues around prevention, help us with outreach services, make sure veterans get plugged into our services."

St. Vincent de Paul has 100 beds for its men's shelter, with twenty just for homeless veterans. The beds for the veterans have been at capacity since 2003, when the program started.

Greider said there was a two-month waiting list in the winter when he applied for the program. He says for some homeless veterans that would've been frustrating to have to wait so long.

Greider says, "Veterans really need more places like this because there is a lot of homeless veterans out there. St. Vincent only has some many rooms. Wayside only has so many rooms."

The Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs says each night there are 800 to 1200 veterans sleeping on the streets of the Commonwealth. Greider is just hoping they will get help like he did to turn their life around.

He says, "It's comfortable here, safe here." He says at St. Vincent, people help you with your needs.

Nationwide, it's estimated there are more than 100,000 homeless veterans. Watch newscast video and read more about Rob in St. Vincent de Paul's July 2010 Good Sam newsletter.)