Homeless Veterans Stand Down Event Scheduled For April 5th – 7th, 2013
On any given night in the Big Bend area, we have several hundred Homeless Veterans, countless numbers of these veterans are homeless due to conditions resulting from combat in a foreign country while giving their all to keep our citizens safe at home. Many of these veterans have only primitive sleeping conditions, sleeping on the cold ground, often on an empty stomach, with perhaps a piece of cardboard for a bed, old newspapers for a blanket, and if lucky an old piece of canvas for a roof over their head to keep the night’s dew or perhaps the rain off. These are the veterans and veterans families that we want to welcome to our Homeless Veterans Stand Down at the North Florida Fairgrounds, Tallahassee, FL on April 5-7, 2013.
In times of war, exhausted combat units requiring time to rest and recover were removed from the battlefields to a place of security and safety. Today, Stand Down refers to a grassroots, community-based intervention program designed to help the nation’s estimated 67,000 homeless veterans “combat” life on the streets.
During the three-day event, the North Florida Fairgrounds will take on a military atmosphere as tents and cots are setup for homeless veterans, who will live and sleep on the property through the weekend. Veterans and their families who are living on the streets or who do not have permanent housing will get free access to showers, food, clothing, medical services, legal and mental health services, job opportunity, and even civil court. Most importantly, though, they will receive companionship and camaraderie.
This event is sponsored by the Florida Veterans Foundation and the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs with the assistance from our Veterans Service Organizations, Big Bend area counties, cities, and local civic organization.
“Stand Downs” began in San Diego, CA in 1988. Twenty-five years later, that organization has celebrated many successes, and was featured in 2010 on “60 Minutes” . There are now more than 200 Stand Downs throughout the country. While many Stand Downs are a one-day event, including the local Homeless Stand Down which has been successfully held for the last 13 years by the Big Bend Homeless Coalition, this is the first time that our community will emulate the three-day San Diego model, which is exclusively for veterans.
For Further Information Contact:
Washington J. Sanchez, Jr.
Stand Down Program Director
Director/Treasurer
Florida Veterans Foundation, Inc.
850-488-4181 or 850-322-8455
sanchezw@fdva.state.fl.us
Denna Green-Corbett, LMSW, ACSW
Stand Down Participant Registrar/Director
Health Care for Homeless Veterans Case Manager
US Department of Veterans Affairs
850-521-5700 ext. 1217 or 352-339-5593
850-521-5700 ext. 1217 or 352-339-5593
sanchezw@fdva.state.fl.us denna.green-corbett@va.gov
Click here for the event’s website
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