Mission focuses on suicides, homelessness
COLONIE — The American Legion Department of New York has launched a number of efforts to help stem veterans’ suicide and homelessness.
David R. Riley Sr., commander of the American Legion Department of New York, announced details on those efforts during the organization’s midwinter conference at the Crowne Plaza Desmond Hotel.
The organization has awarded $309,000 to groups throughout the Capital Region and the state that help prevent suicide and homelessness.
The funds came from the New York Department’s $1.5 million fund for grants to address veteran suicide and homelessness, according to Robert Stronach, American Legion spokesman. The funds are allocated to organizations that help veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or who are at risk of homelessness, Riley said.
The latest grants include:
A $100,000 grant to the Equicenter in Honeoye Falls, to provide equineassisted therapies for veterans.
A $15,000 grant to the Western New York Veterans Housing Coalition in Buffalo to help outfit apartments for veterans.
A $100,000 grant to fund a pilot project to expand and measure the RTM Protocol treatment for veterans with PTSD, developed by the Research and Recognition Project in Corning.
A $34,450 grant is outfitting the Beverly House, a home for homeless women veterans with children, operated by Veterans & Community Housing Coalition in Saratoga County.
A $24,000 grant is enabling the Albany Housing Coalition to furnish six newly rehabilitated apartments for homeless veterans.
A $36,000 grant went to the Hoboken Legion Post 107 in New Jersey to furnish 18 newly refurbished apartments for homeless veterans. They accept any homeless vet from New York state and New Jersey.
“The $100,000 grant will bolster Equicenter’s capacity to help veterans, providing all services free of charge,” Riley said. “Many of the veterans are dealing with devastating physical and emotional effects of combat. Equineassisted therapies help them overcome those symptoms of PTSD.
“As Equicenter describes it, physical contact and communication with the horse and the rhythmic movement can restore confidence and an appreciation of oneself. This addresses physical and emotional imbalances in a gentle, self-guided manner — ultimately leading to healing and a successful transition from military service to civilian life.”
Riley presented the donation to Albany Housing Coalition Executive Director Joseph Sluszka during a ceremony at the John J. Wyszomirski American Legion Post in Amsterdam.
The Clinton Avenue Veterans Apartments in Albany will offer six units of renovated, affordable, supportive permanent housing in a side-by-side pair of Victorian brick town houses adjacent to the coalition’s offices and team of case managers, Riley said.
“New furnishings in newly renovated apartments will help provide veterans a permanent secure home and a sense of pride in their environment and in themselves, eliminating the feelings of want and uncertainty in their surroundings that feeds a homeless mentality,” Riley said.
The commander praised the housing coalition for serving more than 400 at-risk and homeless veterans a year in the Capital Region.
The coalition works in partnership with various Veterans Affairs services, New York State Division of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The Albany Housing Coalition also served as a site for two clinical trials for the RTM Protocol developed by Dr. Frank Bourke to combat PTSD. The Research and Recognition Project, a Corningbased nonprofit founded by Bourke, received one of the first two Legion grants to fund a pilot project to expand and measure the treatment.
In clinical trials, the treatment has eliminated post-traumatic stress symptoms more than 90 percent of the time in less than five hours, using no drugs, Riley said.
He also announced that the American Legion was bringing its “Be the One” suicide-prevention campaign to posts across the state.
“If each Legion member is able to ‘be the one’ to reach out and help one veteran suffering from depression or other signs of post-traumatic stress, we’ll have a dramatic impact on the number of veterans taking their own lives,” Riley said.
The Legion is training members to recognize and talk to veterans exhibiting signs of PTSD.
“Very few of us (Legion members) are trained counselors or mental health professionals,” Riley said. “But we are capable of listening, referring and follow-up. The national crisis line still works, but now there is even a shorter number. It is 9-8-8, Ext. 1 for veterans. Most kindergartners know what 9-1-1 if for. It’s now up to us to ensure that 9-8-8 becomes just as widely known. By calling 9-8-8 now, we can prevent a 9-1-1 call later.”
The Legion now has a Be the One website for suicide prevention. It is Betheone.org.