This year, a higher level of attention has been brought to a group of Americans who deserve our appreciation but often don’t get the kind of thanks they truly need.
Throughout the country, veterans are struggling with issues few of us can fathom. Many face not only physical and mental challenges upon returning home from conflict, but pressing financial concerns as well. It may shock you to know that nearly 50,000 veterans across the United States are homeless.
The federal government has a role in addressing this problem, and it’s doing more than ever before to fill that role. Recently, my company, Love Funding, partnered with the U.S. Veterans Administration in helping to develop an assisted-living residence in Viera, Fla. It combined an “enhanced use lease” from the VA with low-rate financing obtained through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The facility, the first of its kind in the country that brings the missions of both agencies under one roof, provides priority consideration to U.S. veterans, along with discounted rents.
Unfortunately, federal housing funding, especially for veterans, is subject to budgetary restrictions, which continue to be comparatively stiff. But when it comes to the ways we support veterans outside of government, the only limit to what we can do is our imagination. This is especially true when it comes to ensuring that every veteran has a roof over his head.
This year, Love Funding had the opportunity to team with Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit organization that helps low-income homeowners stay in their homes by taking on critical repairs, accessibility modifications and energy-reducing upgrades. Our employees got a chance to see the impact Rebuilding Together is having in local communities in helping the organization make repairs to homes in three cities — Washington, D.C., St. Louis and Cleveland.
Rebuilding Together and organizations like it have dedicated much of their effort to working specifically on behalf of veterans. More than half of U.S. veterans are considered elderly, so many of them aren’t physically or financially able to keep their homes livable.
Rebuilding Together of Washington, D.C., helped one such veteran last year. The 81-year-old Navy veteran of the Korean War had lived in his Ward 7 home for more than four decades. He is the sole caregiver for his wife, who is diabetic, a stroke victim and a double amputee. The couple was in dire need of a wheelchair ramp and bathroom safety bars. A leaky roof was damaging the ceiling in several rooms.
This veteran wasn’t in a position to fix the problems that were threatening to drive the couple out of their home. Rebuilding Together of Washington, D.C., and its sponsors answered their call, installing a new roof and the other upgrades as well.
It might seem like Veterans Day is the best time of the year to ask for support for organizations such as Rebuilding Together. But we know that, on average, charities receive about 40 percent of their annual donations during the last few weeks of the year.
This holiday season we all have a chance to do something more than simply keep our veterans in our thoughts. One way is by contributing to a charity like Rebuilding Together that helps veterans address their most pressing needs. It’s a great time of the year to make a difference for those who have given so much for us.
Mark Dellonte is president and CEO of Love Funding, a multifamily, senior housing and healthcare lender in Washington, D.C. Thinking of submitting an op-ed to the Washington Examiner? Be sure to read our guidelines on submissions for editorials, available at this link.
