Rep. Grijalva meets with local nonprofits
Issues discussed during Yuma visit included assistance for newly discharged veterans
Service providers for Yuma veterans met with Rep. Raul Grijalva Wednesday to talk about the needs local vets have for assistance, especially those recently discharged from the military.
The issue that rose to the top at the lunchtime meeting was how veterans just discharged from one of Yuma’s military bases can find housing while they wait for approval of their federal benefits.
The Tucson Democrat said he is constantly being contacted by lobbyists for veterans’ causes but has been wanting to spend more time talking to those working in the trenches to help them.
“There are great advocates, and they’re doing a good job. But there are also people working with these individuals day in and day out, and they don’t get heard a lot about what their job’s like and the constraints, and what you’re doing here is a significant job. I’m going to go back and focus on the transitional part, look at it closely,” Grijalva told the group.
He met with representatives of local nonprofits at the offices of National Community Health Partners, which assists homeless vets through outreach and referrals. Other nonprofits and government agencies with a presence included the Arizona Economic Security and Veterans’ Services departments, the Housing Authority of the City of Yuma, VFW and ACHIEVE Human Services.
Jose Avalos, veteran benefits counselor for the state’s Veterans’ Services agency, said the gap was there with a client he met earlier in the day who was discharged two weeks ago and pitching a tent in his parents’ backyard to live in until his payments started coming in.
But Avalos said he couldn’t really do anything to help with “transitional housing, temporary housing, something he could be put into while he’s accommodating any of these requests, verifying his eligibility.”
“I can start the immediate 214 (certificate of discharge) or the immediate VA claims process for his pension, but I feel honestly guilty sending him out the door. The most I can do is give him a water bottle and tell him to make sure he touches base with NCHP, as they’re the SSVF (federal veteran housing) grant holder, and then wait for him to come back based on any paperwork, and sometimes I allow them to use my office,” he said.
Miguel Villalpando, Yuma project coordinator for NCHP, added, “And unfortunately, here what we use for transition is the homeless shelter. But a lot of our veterans don’t want to go to a homeless shelter, so they camp outside somewhere, and they get lost.”
Housing that is affordable for the partnership’s clients is hard to come by. “The housing stock, affordable housing, that’s what we really need. For our clients, the average income is $850, if they have income, and for the majority it’s zero income.”
Grijalva said the need for providing “wrap-around services” for veterans, old and new, is becoming more and more obvious, but he’s concerned about proposed federal budget cuts that would eliminate programs at the U.S. Department of Housing and privatize the VA health system.
Grijalva, whose district includes southern Yuma County and reaches up into Maricopa County, also held a press conference Wednesday in San Luis announcing a proposal to assist agricultural workers. He is holding a “veterans engagement summit” in Avondale today with Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix.
He is running for his ninth term in Congress this year and is unopposed in the Democratic primary. Republicans Sergio Arellano and Edna San Miguel and independent Bill Abatecola are among the other candidates in Arizona Congressional District 3.
Yuma Sun staff writer Blake Herzog can be reached at (928) 539-6856 or bherzog@yumasun.com.