Their duty; our duty

A week ago, we observed Veterans Day. Keyword: observed. We recognized it was upon us, paid a brief tribute to those who have served and then promptly moved on.  
But perhaps we missed something.

While patriotic parades meandered down city streets across this country, we found it easy to forget the thousands of veterans who call those same streets home.

200,000 Veterans find themselves without a place to sleep each night. Men and women who’ve worn the proud uniform of the United States military and marched under our flag now dress in donated clothes and sleep beneath newspapers.

In fact, more than a quarter of our nation’s homeless population once served in the military.

Bob Rogers, president of the Indiana Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care, said about 90 percent of the homeless veterans in our region also struggle with mental health issues and substance abuse.

Lacking stability and a strong network of support, people become homeless all-too easily after a family breakdown or the loss of employment. And in this struggling economy, where affordable housing and good jobs have become harder and harder to find, their plight is magnified.

Men are especially affected. Comprising 96 percent of the homeless veteran population, men are eligible for little government aid, as most housing money is reserved for homeless families or single mothers.

But while many Americans find homelessness heartbreaking, few act. The circumstance, like Veterans Day, is simply observed. We see it and sigh, but that’s all.

This is not what our veterans deserve. Regardless of our feelings toward this war, or that war, or war in general, we cannot be ungrateful to those who stood on a line, held a gun and fought in our place. And we cannot honor their past valor – their deeds on a field or on a beach or in a desert or in the sky – without recognizing their present circumstance. Homelessness among veterans is a reality. But it doesn’t need to continue.

We can donate our time or our clothing to homeless shelters. We can give our money to post funds established for homeless veterans. We can join local coalitions to combat homelessness and provide for the basic needs of those who fought for our basic right. And, we could take the simple yet profound step of changing our own perception of homelessness.

The homeless don’t need our judgment. They’re not there by choice. Nor is their situation a reflection upon their character or intelligence – in fact, 85 percent of homeless veterans completed high school or received a GED, and 89 percent were honorably discharged from the armed services. Their condition is a result of circumstance. And we must always be forgiving.

The arms that hold the cardboard sign could once have cradled a close comrade. And those same sad eyes might have seen that best friend slip away.

They did their duty. Let’s do ours.

To find out how you can help homeless veterans in Indiana, visit www.hvaf.org.