A few weeks ago I wrote about my friend, George, who is a veteran of the war in Iraq and was homeless on the streets of San Diego. I promised I would update his story when there were new developments.
George is now back in Michigan with a roof over his head, and getting ready to attend college.
If you missed the earlier diary, here is a recap of George's story:
George joined the Army after high school, got out, found civilian life didn't suit him, and got back in in 1998. He served stateside, in Germany, and then in Iraq, where he was a truck driver at a base in or near Samarra.
He moved to Iowa, went to school to learn to work with horses, and worked several jobs, including as a truck driver, but that fell through and he found himself jobless and on the verge of being homeless. He moved to San Diego, and it was from there that he contacted me.
I've known George since high school. The last time I saw him before he called me from San Diego was in 2007 when he came to Detroit for a visit. I was stunned to hear that he was living on the streets.
That should never happen to our veterans. It doesn't matter what one thinks about the war; soldiers aren't responsible for the wars, politicians are. We should always take good care of our veterans.
Perfect Timing
George called me in the middle of the night, but I just happened to be awake, unable to sleep. I also just happened to be about to close on a new condo. My then-residence, what I now call "my old place", was not in any condition to put on the market, and the market isn't in any condition for that right now, either. But it's livable. I'd been living there for years. My plan was to live in the new place while fixing up the old place, and paying the monthly condo association fees on both.
Then my old friend called and told me he was sleeping in a doorway.
I'm not writing about this to blow my own horn. I'm very grateful for some of the positive comments I received on my earlier diary, but more than that, I'm grateful to be in a position in this life where I can help someone else. I'm not rich, but I have a decent job that, so far, is still there despite the recession. I consider myself lucky.
A New Hope
I bought George a bus ticket and he came back here to Detroit about a month ago. (Yes, I have been remiss in my promise to update the story.) He's now living in my "old place" and helping me to clean it up and make some minor repairs.
He is now receiving unemployment from the last trucking company he worked for in Iowa, and tomorrow he will begin classes at Wayne State University in their Veteran's Educational Opportunity Program, or VEOP. (It's an old link, but most of the other links I found about it were to PDF files.)
He has also applied to the college of liberal arts to pursue a bachelor's degree, and expects an answer in the next few days. The VEOP program is free and not for credit, but if he is admitted, he will be attending Wayne State this fall under the G.I. bill.
He is looking for work, but so far hasn't found anything. I want to thank again all the people who made excellent and helpful comments in the previous diary. We have followed up on some of the suggestions and still intend to follow up on others. The whole process has unfolded rather more slowly than I had expected, but in many ways that has been a good thing.
Supporting our Veterans
I'm not sure what we can do in general to help our vets who are having trouble. It was sheer luck that I was in a position to help him. I hope the Obama administration will do the right thing, but we all need to keep the pressure on our elected officials to make sure that happens.
Please read Jan Barry's excellent diary from yesterday about a home for veterans, and the NIMBY response to its construction. It didn't get nearly the attention it deserved.