“Just Make the Call.” SSVF and The Salvation Army Help Veterans Navigate a Housing Crisis
A few months ago, Air Force Veteran Cyntrea Cotton was living in fear. After a panic attack led her to put in an end-of-lease notice on her previous apartment, she left Los Angeles to regroup in Arizona.
However, when she got back to L.A., she didn’t have anywhere to go and ended up sleeping in her car. Life on the L.A. streets was unstable, and as a single woman – dangerous, too.
“I had lost all hope,” said Cotton. “I didn’t know what to do.”
Before her crisis, she said she wasn’t aware of what services existed for those who have served. She spent five years in the Air Force as a chaplain’s assistant, traveling from Croatia to Bosnia to Sarajevo and beyond. But while her military service gave her many skills to handle emergencies abroad, she found herself at her wit’s end when she became homeless here at home.
Fortunately, another Veteran introduced her to The Salvation Army, a Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) grantee. Through VA’s SSVF program, The Salvation Army helps low-income Veterans avoid homelessness or become quickly rehoused if they become homeless.
She made the call and got a response within minutes.
How SSVF Helps Veterans
For a Veteran facing a housing crisis, SSVF can mean the difference between life on the streets and building a future in a safe, secure home.
“The ultimate key is housing sustainability,” said Chris Gilrath II, program manager for The Salvation Army. “That’s what we help the Veterans do.”
For Gilrath, his lifelong passion for service is reflected in his work. “Veterans have given so much to our country in terms of sacrificing their time, their time with family, their physical and mental health – they really put their lives on the line. This for me is a way of giving back.”
The SSVF program provides financial assistance in the form of grants to private nonprofit organizations and consumer cooperatives that will assist very low-income Veteran families residing in or transitioning to permanent housing, said VA’s SSVF Regional Coordinator Maggie Lo.
She said grantees provide a range of supportive services to eligible Veteran families that are designed to promote housing stability. They may provide assistance with obtaining and maintaining permanent housing such as rental and utility arrears assistance, security deposits, and getting services turned on.
Also, she said SSVF grantees may provide supportive services such as outreach, case management, connection to VA benefits and programs, connection to public benefits and community resources, temporary financial assistance, childcare, legal services, housing navigation, and employment support .
“We can even offer funding to provide for comfort items, whatever a Veteran might need to feel at home,” said Lo. This could include televisions or other home décor items. Gym memberships can also be paid for, giving Veterans a healthy place to move their bodies, socialize and become members of their communities. Some apartment units come without refrigerators or stoves, and SSVF can even help with those needs too.
In the greater Los Angeles area, SSVF has 13 grantees through which it distributes funds and services. In addition to The Salvation Army, these are: California Veterans Assistance Foundation, Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo, Good Samaritan Shelter, Volunteers of America of Los Angeles, United States Veterans Initiative (U.S. Vets), New Beginnings Counseling Center, People Assisting the Homeless, 1736 Family Crisis Center, Village for Vets, JVS SoCal, New Life Social Services of Atlanta and Mental Health America of Los Angeles.
To be eligible for SSVF, Veteran families must have an eligible Veteran status, be literally homeless or at risk of being literally homeless and have a gross annual income that does not exceed 80% of Area Median Income (AMI). In the Los Angeles area 80% AMI amounts to $70,650 for a one-person household.
Feeling Fully Supported
Cotton, who’s worked as an actress and stand-in, found an apartment specifically for artists in the entertainment industry but didn’t have money for a security deposit or first month’s rent. Two days before signing a lease she found The Salvation Army.
Despite the short notice, they completed her intake and processed her application for assistance just in time to secure the apartment. They put her up in a hotel until the space was ready, paid her past utility arrears, provided comfort items to furnish her new home, and even had a driver help deliver furniture she obtained through the nonprofit Patriots and Paws.
“I don’t know where I would be if I did not get connected to them,” said Cotton. “I’m still in shock with the support that I’m still getting.”
From the first time she called The Salvation Army, Cotton has felt fully supported by a caring team of people. Now, she’s settling into her light and airy living space in Hollywood with a sprawling balcony that overlooks the city’s iconic sign.
Cotton hopes that Veterans in need find assistance through SSVF grantees and get the help they’ve earned: “Just make the call. They will take it from there.”
If you’re a Veteran in need of housing help in the Greater Los Angeles area, call the Veteran Temporary Housing Hotline at 310-268-3350, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; or visit VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System’s Homeless Veteran Care page for more information and resources. Nationally, Veterans can dial 1-877-4AID-VET (1-877-424-3838) for assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.