For the first time, the Lake County non-profit Sub Zero Mission is sharing its plans to steam-line services for unhoused veterans. The main goal of the new program is to find a long-term solution to keep veterans off the streets.
For Bobby Wallas, becoming unhoused wasn’t something he expected to ever happen.
“I’ve been out here three to four years,” said Wallas. “It sucks because it’s hazardous.”
Wallas’s situation on the streets is a tough reality for thousands in Northeast Ohio, including veterans, which groups like Sub Zero Mission are continuously trying to help. This winter, the Painesville-based non-profit reached seven states, 30 cities, and delivered 30,000 warming items to people in need. Summer, though, brings a different set of challenges.
“Finding places for these individuals to go rather them just go and pitching a tent on the side of the street and staying there,” said James Hido, Director of Public Relations for Sub Zero Mission.
Hido said tent communities are growing, and he wants to change that. In September, the non-profit is launching The Veterans Re-Empowerment Program. It starts with boots on the ground and a series of questions because some unhoused don't want help.
“We are going to ask them, ‘Are you looking for a solution and a way out?’” Hido added. “Naturally, if they say yes, we are then going to verify them through the Veteran's Affairs Portal to verify that they are a veteran.”
From there, veterans will be offered a series of resources at Sub Zero Mission’s new Treatment Center, ranging from counseling to job opportunities.
“A vast majority of individuals in homeless scenarios, there is a tie to alcoholism and drug abuse so a lot of that treatment can potentially happen here,” Hido said. “Ultimately, we are trying to give them every outlet they need to be able to get back on their feet and truly have that line of success they should be rightfully owed.”
Hido said a database will be created to streamline who is receiving help and where, which he said hasn't existed until now.
“When other organizations like NEOCH [Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless] need other information, we can point them in the right direction to say, ‘Yes, we are already working with this individual, here is the outlet you need.'"
For many struggling Veterans, it’s one day at a time and that’s Wallas's approach for now as well.
“What’s next for me, getting in touch with my case manager about getting me a spot,” Wallas added.
Sub Zero Mission’s Veterans Re-Empowerment Program will launch Labor Day weekend. This program will help not only Northeast Ohio veterans but also veterans across the state.
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