Could your Ohio car donation help end veteran homelessness in 2015?

Help get every veteran off of the streets by the end of the year

In November of 2009, President Obama and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki announced an ambitious five-year program that would aim to end veteran homelessness in the year 2015.

Now that the year is upon us, the onus of responsibility not only falls on the government, but everyone in America to help ensure that this challenging goal becomes a reality.

Veteran homelessness statistics

Every year, thousands of veterans return home to a country still suffering from expensive housing rates and a difficult job market–lingering side effects from the economic recession in 2008.

As a result, many veterans are unable to find work, shelter or proper treatment for the injuries they sustained in combat. The challenges they now cope with just to survive often lead to a life of homelessness.

In January 2014, there were approximately 49,933 homeless veterans in the United States, according to a point-in-time survey. Although this number is down 33 percent from 2010, there is still much work that must be done if these veterans are to be safely housed by the end of 2015.

What’s being done

The government did not set this goal as an empty gesture. Since the announcement, an aggressive strategy has been enacted to help veterans get off the streets, including:

• Funding and grants for veteran-specific programs and services
• Treatment programs for veterans suffering from injuries, mental illnesses and substance abuse
• Support systems for ‘at risk’ veterans teetering on the brink of homelessness
• Transitional shelters, affordable housing and employment programs for returning veterans
• The Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness to help veteran housing efforts in major cities

While all of these measures have definitely made a difference over the last four years, there are still many obstacles to overcome if every single veteran is expected to be off the streets by the end of this year.

Make an Ohio car donation to help end veteran homelessness

Although some of the numbers regarding veteran homelessness are promising, this issue requires everyone to work together to ensure that it’s completely resolved by the end of this year. Veterans have made incredible sacrifices to defend our country, and we all owe it to them to make sure that, at the very least, they always have somewhere warm and safe to stay.

At Volunteers of America of Greater Ohio, we specialize in shelter, affordable housing and support programs for veterans in need. However, we depend on your kindness and donations to support and expand these services.

If you want to help homeless veterans in all of the Ohio communities we serve, and you have an extra vehicle you know you’ll never use again, please donate it to Volunteers of America. We can arrange free same-day towing to pick it up, and we’ll take anything with a motor, including RVs, motorcycles, tractors, and boats. This donation is tax deductible, and it might even net you more money as a donation than it would if you sold it privately.

Please help us end veteran homelessness in 2015 and donate to Volunteers of America today.