Columbia VA houses homeless Veterans after shelter closure

Following the unexpected loss of a transitional housing option for Veterans, Columbia VA sprang into action to ensure Veterans had access to safe and stable housing.

Christ Central had been a long-time partner of Columbia VA, providing transitional housing for homeless Veterans through the Grant and Per Diem (GPD) program, a federal initiative aimed at addressing the housing needs of homeless Veterans. GPD did not renew the contract with Christ Central. 

This decision impacted 65 Veterans who were residing at Christ Central. Many of the affected Veterans were linked with Columbia VA’s HUD/VASH program, which assists homeless Veterans in finding permanent housing.

Columbia VA initiated a comprehensive process to ensure the affected Veterans would have suitable housing arrangements.

“We reviewed each Veteran’s housing plan with them and discussed the program’s closing. Each Veteran was assured we would do everything in our power to make sure that they either were discharged to independent housing or they would be transferred to another one of our transitional housing beds,” said Homeless Program Coordinator Sherry Martell.

Columbia VA secured funds from the national program office to create 28 emergency contract beds at Transitions, a local organization that hosts 12 beds. The additional beds opened on July 5 and quickly filled up.

Permanently housed 267 homeless Veterans through August

Collaboration with various community resources was instrumental in the successful housing efforts. As of September 11, only six Veterans remained at Christ Central who needed to be moved to another transitional housing bed at one of Columbia VA’s contract sites. The remaining Veterans either found housing through the HUD/VASH program, secured their own housing or chose to live with family members or friends. Thirty-three of the 65 Veterans were successfully housed with the HUD/VASH program.

Martell emphasized the mission of the program is to assist homeless Veterans and link them with needed services, so it was not a new endeavor—but the shortened timeline added urgency to the task.

Columbia VA continues to make strides in its mission to house homeless Veterans. “We have a national goal to house 339 homeless Veterans this calendar year. As of August 2023, we have permanently housed 267 homeless Veterans,” Martell said.