Work continues to end veteran homelessness

The news is mixed concerning homelessness among military veterans — which means we still have much work to do to support those who served.

Efforts by veterans groups and elected officials have helped reduce the number of homeless veterans.

Efforts by veterans groups and elected officials in Washington and Harrisburg have helped reduce the number of homeless veterans in our state and across the country since 2010.

That year, about 75,000 vets didn’t have permanent places to live, with more than 1,400 of them counted in Pennsylvania. Nationally, the number fell below 40,000 this year.

The state, working with local groups, has helped 2,500 vets find homes in the past two years, our John Finnerty reported from Harrisburg.

But the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said Pennsylvania still had 1,136 homeless veterans as of January, the latest figures. The Keystone State’s totals are seventh-highest in the country.

That’s because — according to Ron Conley, president of the Pennsylvania American Legion’s Housing for Homeless Veterans — “every time one goes out the door, another comes in.”

Conley fears an increase in homeless veterans in the coming years.

The American Legion official pointed to factors that make the issue more complicated than simply finding apartments for those living on the streets.

“There are more veterans coming home with (post-traumatic stress disorder) and drug and alcohol problems,” Conley said.

On Dec. 16, President Barack Obama signed into law the Dignified Interment of Our Veterans Act, which requires that the secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs study how unclaimed veterans’ remains are being handled.

The measure, introduced by U.S. Rep Bill Shuster, R-Everett, calls for better communication between the VA and funeral directors with a goal of finding proper burial places for veterans who had no family or friends come forward when they died.

We applaud this effort and support its mission.

But we also suspect that working to better support veterans while they are alive will lead to fewer vets dying alone - and fewer unclaimed remains.

We urge area and state agencies to increase their efforts to seek out homeless vets and connect them with housing programs and other sources of support, from job counseling to addiction services.

We urge families to embrace their struggling brothers and sisters and get them the help they need, and we urge veterans to find help for themselves and others they know are facing emotional and financial hardship.

“It’s not right that someone defends their country and then comes home and can’t find a permanent place to live,” Conley said.

We owe these individuals every ounce of energy we can provide to help them get out of their difficult circumstances.

We urge families to embrace their struggling brothers and sisters and get them the help they need, and we urge veterans to find help for themselves and others they know are facing emotional and financial hardship.