The Vet Hunters Project
Did you know that 18% of the homeless in Los Angeles are veterans? That’s what Sergeant Joe Leal told us. He has founded an organization to be an advocate for these homeless heroes, Vet Hunters. Many people do not believe that vets are homeless, yet Sgt. Joe called them the MIAs, “Missing in America.”
Many who served in Iraq or Afghanistan and suffered PTDS, or post-traumatic depression syndrome, could not fit into civilian life after they came home and some ended up on the Skid Rows of America. This includes women as well as men.
In the first year since he founded his organization, Joe has recovered 1006 persons who were “lost.” His non-profit organization has founded ten veterans’ homes, called “Villanueva,” where his workers supply anything from socks and shoes to assistance in registering with the Veterans Administration to get needed medical care. He says this is a God-given task, and he and his organization help the homeless vets to “open their minds to Jesus.”
Last year Joe organized a bicycle ride from Los Angeles to St. Lois, on two-wheeled pedal bicycles not motorcycles. He and his co-riders were looking for the homeless, for vets who would accept their help. For $6, the price of a military discounted Greyhound bus ticket, they sometimes can send a vet home to be reunited with his family. Joe likens his mission to the military tradition of not leaving one’s injured buddies behind.
In Las Vegas, for example, they found sixty-eight homeless vets in one week. In Colorado they walked their bikes up the steps of the State Capitol, to publicize their cause. The New Mexico Department of Veterans Affairs has been interested in the number they “discover” and place in homes in a year. Joe says they can be found sleeping under underpasses, on exit ramps, in front of the Post Office, all around us in broad daylight.
This year on August 21 VetHunters plan to start out on a bigger ride from Los Angeles, ending in Washington DC at the Lincoln Memorial. They want to “make noise,” to show the country how many homeless are living right in front of them. These are the veterans who helped make it possible for us to celebrate the Fourth of July. Check out their website at www.VetHunters.org