Homeless vets to be assisted

AUGUSTA – Homeless veterans from around the state will be given everything from new clothes to housing and employment information at Saturday’s 10th annual Maine Homeless Veterans Stand-Down.

The Department of Veterans Affairs will host the event from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Augusta, but participants may gather at 10 locations throughout the state and receive a ride to the event. Most pick-up points are south of Augusta, but a van will leave from the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter at 7:30 a.m. and the Caribou Vet Center at 5 a.m.

“Homeless veterans have different needs,” said Jim Doherty, staff assistant to the center director at the Department of Veterans Affairs. “Some seek housing, others live in their cars and need jobs.”

The department works with state and national organizations, as well as with resident volunteers, to provide clothing, haircuts, food, legal advice, medical screening, showers, employment information, counseling and housing information for Maine’s homeless veterans.

Last year, 73 homeless veterans attended the event, and most were veterans of the Vietnam War and post-Vietnam era, Doherty said. The typical homeless veteran attendee is in his or her early 50s, Doherty estimated. No Iraq war veterans have attended the stand-down, he said.

All participants must complete an initial screening to ensure the individual is a veteran and homeless, he said. Sailors from the Brunswick Naval Air Station then escort the veterans through 12 stations that care for both basic and more long-term needs.

A grant from the Department of Labor will provide new socks, underwear, shirts, pants, boots and winter coats for the veterans, while two volunteers will provide haircuts. The local Elks Lodge will cater a Thanksgiving-style lunch, and veteran affairs chaplains will be available to counsel.

Beyond the basic needs, veterans can receive legal advice, medical care and reading glasses, he said.

For information call Doherty at 623-8411 ext. 5714. If anyone wants to volunteer call Lorna Hatch 623-8411 or 877-421-8263, ext. 5633.