For this story, we want to highlight a specific arm of our
Roads Home program, the Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program (HVRP).
Roads Home HVRP is active in the counties of Solano and
Contra Costa, and is specifically focused on helping veterans find employment.
The goal of this program, made possible by grant funds from the Department of
Labor, is to make sure that veterans are receiving a stable income at the same
time that they are receiving housing services.
Some of the most common challenges faced by our clients are
physical or mental disabilities, gaps in employment, and lack of education or
skills. Many clients are coming from living on the streets and have been
unemployed and unhoused for a significant period of time. Clients like Gerald.
Gerald had been living under a bridge for two years when he
heard about the Roads Home program from one of our partner agencies in
Fairfield. It took a while to earn Gerald’s trust so for the first three
months, HVRP staff met with him every three days to make sure he was receiving
and responding to all the wraparound services that he needed.
Most of our clients have a history of work that involves
hard manual labor, but due to disability or aging, they can no longer perform
such physically taxing work. We work with the client to prepare them for jobs
that they are able to do. Some of the best fields for the veterans we work with
are: security guard, delivery driver, and dispatcher.
Between both the housing and employment departments of Roads
Home, we were able to provide Gerald with everything from clothing to job
training to housing assistance. He was
able to secure a housing voucher from the HUD-VA supportive housing program,
and a job at the San Francisco Airport. The last time Gerald came in to our
office he was wearing a big smile “I’m truly a changed man from the experience
of working with the HVRP program.”
Another client, Joseph, first came to us because he was on
the verge of becoming homeless. He had been unsuccessfully searching for a job
and was struggling to support himself and his family of six. “I needed a
lifeline and I sought out housing services.” Our housing services department
referred him to HVRP.
Run by Employment Services Supervisor, Rhoda McKenzie and
her dedicated team, HVRP uses what they call a “red carpet approach” when
clients come into the office for services. The veterans are always met with
kindness and respect as they are welcomed into the program. When a client first
comes to us, we sit down with them one-on-one to create a plan to get them to
where they want to go. Some of the things that we can do to help prepare
veterans for employment include: specific skills training such as computer
proficiency, helping them get their GED, and signing them up for certification
or licensing.
For Joseph, we were able to help him complete training and
certification to become a security guard. “I enjoyed the training I received to
obtain my BSIS card which included the regular guard card class and taking my
baton permit class.”
HVRP will work with clients for a full year to help them
find a job and then once they are employed we will be there to check in with
them on a monthly basis for an additional year to make sure they are able to
retain their employment.
As part of this program, we also organize job fairs where we
bring together veterans and prospective employers in the area. What makes this
different to other job fairs is that each of the represented employers are
already willing to hire formerly homeless veterans. Many are even specifically
looking for employees with a military background.
Joseph got a job at National Pro Security and is now
overseeing twelve posts. “I enjoy using my experience and skills from the
military to work with all types of individuals and being able to interact with
them on a daily basis.”
We believe patience, persistence, and partnership are the
keys to helping veterans overcome the initial barriers of homelessness and
unemployment. With this program we are able to work with each client
individually to help them address their specific challenges and rejoin society.
In Joseph’s words, “I am no longer in a housing crisis and I
am able to support my family with my job. Roads Home has definitely brought me
to where I am today.”
