Bay Pines VA welcomed Veterans to the C.W. Bill Young VA for a surge event aimed at rapidly moving unhoused Veterans into sheltered or transitional housing and on a path to permanent housing.

Since January 2022, Bay Pines VA has helped 1,377 Veterans move into permanent residences. Last year, the team helped VA exceed its goal with 630 Veterans permanently housed. This year the team added another 747 Veterans to the list, an increase of 18.5 percent.

“Our commitment to helping Veterans receive permanent housing is essential to their overall health care,” said Bay Pines VA Chief of Homeless Programs, Yvonne Morales. “We’re proud that Veterans are stepping forward to allow us to help and we will continue this effort to ensure that every Veteran has a safe and stable place to call home.”

Pictured above, social worker Melissa Cormemy speaks to a Veteran during the Homeless Veteran Surge Event.

Champions work tirelessly to put Veterans in permanent housing

“Our team has 97 staff across our area who are unwavering champions of Veterans and work tirelessly to put them on a path to permanent housing. These social workers, peer support personnel and housing specialists are game changers for Veterans and I’m so proud to work alongside such a dedicated group of professionals,” Morales said.

While Morales and her team have made a huge impact across southwest Florida, she says everyone on her team understands there’s a bigger goal.

“We estimate there are approximately 1,000 Veterans who are without homes in our area. We refuse to stop until everyone of them receives permanent housing,” she added.

The team’s mission continues in 2024 with support to Pinellas County on Jan. 25. In the spring, the homeless Veteran team hosts the Annual Bay Pines VA Stand Down in the Veterans Courtyard, at C.W. Bill Young VA.

Topics in this story

Homeless Veterans

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6 Comments

  1. Jose Villanueva February 8, 2024 at 06:39

    Morning, I’m presently in a assisted living with VA assistance but want permanent housing to buy is it possible? Redwood city resident

  2. Chris Trussell January 25, 2024 at 21:49

    Iam rated at 100% disabled veteran and get paid 3800.00 a month, and homeless. You might be shaking your heads at my monthly pay but it’s hard even for us to get a place. The total to move in anywhere is 6000.00 or so where I live, not to mention all monthly electric, water etc bills to set up with deposits. Put on top of that you must have sparkling credit score. Home loan you say? Must be employed last 5 years, or some want 550 credit score, Shelters are full, family is all passed on, with no friends to reach out too???? What’s a solution for this? My local V.A. said they can’t help because I make to much on disability. So this is just one of the many situations the V.A. has left me homeless. Been this way over 2 years!!!

  3. Brent Davis January 25, 2024 at 16:01

    A lot of veterans have credit issues that would prevent them to use the VA Home Loan; could or are there programs to help you qualify to meet the requirements in order to use the Home Loan benefit.

  4. John Pegg January 24, 2024 at 23:49

    Hello
    I just need help with a very long problem. Both my father and I are veterans him of Vietnam and I was overseas for 2 years. Both my parents are now gone and I am not having any luck getting their final wishes done. This is the the hardest thing I’ve ever dealt with and I need legal assistance before everything they took a life time to build is gone This can not happen
    Please help
    The last John Pegg

  5. Vickie E Wheeler January 22, 2024 at 12:41

    is there a program for widows for veterans that needs a affordable housing.

  6. Pamela Owen January 22, 2024 at 00:43

    Thank you for the ability to comment to this article specifically.

    I’m a 62 yr young disabled & homeless female veteran and have my 26 ys old Autistic son struggling with me.

    I have read many, many articles and statistics related to Veteran Homeless programs. This is the first article that shares realtime specific stats and numbers for specific geographical areas. The generic broad stats and numbers truly mean nothing. These drill down local programs showing more relevant numbers gives me a lot more hope.

    There is one dataset I would like to see included if there is actually a dataset for it is…of your total number of veterans helped, say quarterly, who are now in either permanent and/or temp to perm housing were “Not Required” to have an addiction and therefore go into some form of rehab in order to not only qualify but to actually receive any assistance and are now not homeless. Break that out into more buckets which include veterans with families, no matter the makeup of whether or not their dependents (kids) are under 17/18…or ??? So far, Young adult dependents don’t count for some odd reason that I truly don’t understand. Dependent parent(s) no problem…
    My view… How many young disabled dependent adults does the VA think there could possibly be who were born disabled because one or both parents were poisoned during their military service by Toxic chemicals or fires or…., and not just post 9/11 or not proven “yet” veterans, etc. Think about the number of homeless veterans, now include their disabled young adult kids that are not only dependent, often a lifetime dependency, now you have….. I’m not even able to begin to express how all of this has and is absolutely unbearable!!!!! Daily emotional upheaval.

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