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Message from Monica Diaz, Executive Director, VHA Homeless Programs Office
VA Homeless Programs
Message from Monica Diaz, Executive Director, VHA Homeless Programs Office
February 2025
Over the past three years, we’ve set our sights high in our campaign to end Veteran homelessness.
As we’ve pushed ourselves to reach and house even more Veterans with each passing year, we have identified what works—and we’re ready to put that knowledge into action.
We believe we can continue to move the needle on Veteran homelessness by focusing on four strategic priorities:
- Fast tracking housing
- Reaching every corner
- No delay, no denial
- Beyond housing
Let’s dive into what each of these means.
Fast tracking housing is probably the most self-explanatory. If we’re going to house at least 46,000 Veterans, we have to ramp up our efforts. We either need to work faster to place Veterans into permanent housing or work with more people at the same time. We have decided to focus on speed, and I’m confident that with our committed, dedicated staff, we can achieve it.
Second on our list is reaching every corner. By this, we mean conducting comprehensive outreach that finds every homeless Veteran—no matter where they are—and connects them with essential VA services.
We will particularly focus on locating unsheltered Veterans because they face the most danger. As they try to survive in often harsh conditions, they may not know there is help waiting for them at VA. We can’t expect them to find us—we must find them.
No delay, no denial may seem more obscure, but it simply means we want to get unsheltered Veterans into temporary housing as fast as we can without having them jump through hoops.
It goes hand-in-hand with increased outreach. Once we find a Veteran, we need to provide them with help immediately. Not in a few days, weeks, or months. We are going to do whatever we can to cut back administrative requirements, remove red tape, and get Veterans into beds that same day.
Finally, we have beyond housing, which recognizes that getting a homeless Veteran into housing is only the first step. The work truly begins once a Veteran has a roof over their head.
Many Veterans contending with homelessness have been unable to address other issues—like chronic illness, substance use, and mental health concerns—while trying to survive. Living outside, exposed to the elements, they often age decades faster than they should, suffering chronic health issues common in someone much older. We will continue to walk alongside these Veterans even after they have been housed, providing them with the services they need to address those deferred issues, stay successfully housed, and even work toward financial independence by acquiring job skills and polishing their resumes.
Through this four-pronged approach, I’m confident we can top our goal for the year and make even greater strides toward ending Veteran homelessness in America.
While we have housed many hundreds of thousands of Veterans over the years, I know there are those still out there, wondering where to turn next. I want to end with a message to them.
Don’t give up hope. We’re here. We’re working to find you. We’re committed to finding you a place to call home as fast as we can. If you need help now, please visit your local VA or call us at (877) 4AID-VET (877-424-3838) for assistance.
