Decades ago, Darrell Harris returned home to his wife and children after serving four years in the Marine Corps. After putting his kids through college, he and his wife had differing opinions on where they wanted to live.
Harris, 64, moved to Florida from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, while his wife moved back to a northern state where they had grown up. Harris moved in with his cousin but didn’t anticipate what was to come.
He lived with his cousin for only one month, until disagreements put Harris on the streets.
“I was homeless for six weeks, but I stayed positive,” Harris said. “I did what I had to do.”
As Harris was looking for resources to keep himself afloat, he stumbled upon Hearts and Homes for Veterans, a non-profit organization located in Fort Myers.
Hearts and Homes for Veterans was started by Don Payton, a combat Marine veteran. Payton became friends with a fellow Marine while in Vietnam, and back in the United States, that friend died homeless. Payton understood the struggles military personnel face when they return to civilian life, and he took it upon himself to reach as many homeless veterans as possible.
Hearts and Homes was formed not just to be another charity, but to end homelessness and assist low-income veterans in Southwest Florida. The services range from financial assistance for short-term rental and utility costs to basic needs.
There are 1.5 million veterans in the state of Florida, with veterans in Lee County making up 10% of the county’s population.
“One veteran's experience in homelessness is one too many,” Michael Raposa, CEO of St. Vincent DePaul CARES, said.
When it comes to homelessness, the first step is to determine the best approach to address the crisis.
"Housing First" is an evidence-based, cost-effective approach to ending homelessness for the most vulnerable and chronically homeless individuals, according to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
According to the Veteran Affairs website, the Housing First model prioritizes housing and then assists the veteran with access to healthcare and other supports that promote stable housing and improved quality of life.
“You’ve got to house the individual first and make them feel they have a secure place,” David Santini, vice-president of Hearts and Homes for Veterans, said. “That way, if they get therapy, they have a place to stay at night instead of struggling.”
Michael Raposa of St. Vincent DePaul CARES, a social services organization in St. Petersburg, said that the nation has more resources for veterans than ever before. But he also said there's one big obstacle: the housing stock.
“The biggest missing piece is the ability to find units that folks can afford,” Raposa said. “But just the availability of units is the greatest challenge.”
In Lee County, St. Vincent DePaul CARES provides some shelter, a scattered housing site, a non-congregate shelter, and rapid rehousing services. Since the pandemic, the organization has done 175 housing placements in Lee County alone. Out of the 175 placements, 75 were veterans and 100 were non-veterans.
“My goal and our agency's goal in life is to house them all and keep them housed,” Raposa said. “Now, there's a certain naïveté that comes with that because in reality, I don't know that we'll ever hit that point with everyone.”
Veterans are overrepresented among the homeless in the United States and are at greater risk than non-veterans of becoming homeless, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Homelessness is associated with chronic health conditions, either causing or preceding such conditions, becoming a consequence of such conditions, or complicating the treatment and care of such conditions.
“Since Sep. 11, 2001, nearly 3 million veterans have deployed to a combat zone,” Director of Home Base Armando Hernandez said. “We know that about one in three of them are returning with an invisible wound, whether that be full-fledged PTSD, depression, a brain injury, substance use. Those are all things that are highly impacting this population.”
Home Base is a non-profit organization located in Fort Myers that was co-founded by Massachusetts General Hospital and the Red Sox Foundation. The mission is to heal the invisible wounds of war for veterans, service members and their families.
More than half of the homeless veterans in the United States have mental disabilities, according to the National Disabled Veterans Foundation.
“This is a real crisis, and we really need to focus on ensuring that our veterans have access to care,” Hernandez said. “And that isn't just by saying ‘Go to the VA, the VA has got it,’ because this is a really big problem that not just one entity can handle.”
Hernandez of Home Base said that when you serve in the military, you build a strong bond with the other men and women, and it creates a second family.
“That creates purpose in people's lives, it creates structure,” Hernandez said. “We all work towards a common mission. We understand where we fit within this mission and why we're doing it.”
When service members leave the camaraderie of the military, they walk into a world that seems chaotic and focused on individual goals and efforts.
“To go from a highly structured environment to a very unstructured environment can be really overwhelming,” Hernandez said. “That's why it's so important for veterans to really find a community, whether it's through wellness, mental health, or social-based activities. We know that the community and that camaraderie will amplify and complement any other forms of care.”
Hernandez believes the effort to help veterans must come from all organizations and resources available in a community. He said help must come from more than one entity; it must be a collaborative effort.
Darrell Harris, who served in the Marine Corps from 1975 to 1979, agrees.
Harris knows better than anyone the power of private organizations and resources and what they can do to help veterans in need or those who experience homelessness, like he once did.
When he discovered Hearts and Homes for Veterans, he was able to get his first one-bedroom, one-bath apartment through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-VA Supportive Housing (VASH) program.
Hearts and Homes completely furnished his apartment, which was located at Mariner’s Landing, two miles away from the headquarters of the organization that helped him get back on his feet.
Harris is a prime example of a success story. He is now the transportation director for the organization. He has been with Hearts and Homes since 2016, and owns his home in Lee County.
“It's a blessing for me to be here because I know what it's like to be on the other side,” Harris said. “I’ve been here since this place was nothing but a shell.”
Hearts and Homes for Veterans’ goal is to help veterans lift themselves out of poverty, and then in turn reach back and help other veterans do the same.
“I wouldn't be here today talking with you if it was for Hearts and Homes,” Harris said. “I'll never turn my back on them.”
The Florida Department of Veterans Affairs said that homelessness among veterans has been reduced by almost 70 percent since 2010. That agency said that the 2019 count found just under 2500 homeless veterans in Florida, down from nearly 7800 in 2010. Surveys by HUD and the VA also show a drop in the number of homeless veterans nationwide in recent years. Still, organizations like Hearts and Homes believe one homeless veteran is one too many.
“When a service member raises their right hand and swears to protect the Constitution and the United States with everything they have, sometimes including their life, there's an implied trust that when they return home, we will be there for them and provide them with the services that they need,” Armando Hernandez of Home Base said.