Mayor Bass and Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles Announce Partnership With U.S.Vets
Mayor Karen Bass is joining the Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles and U.S.VETS to announce a partnership that will help ensure no veterans end up homeless when there are resources available to help them.
“For far too long, government and nonprofit sectors have worked independently on efforts to prevent homelessness,” said Mayor Karen Bass. “The Mayor’s Fund’s We Are LA homelessness prevention efforts are stretching resources further, reaching more people, and helping prevent people from falling into homelessness in the first place. The new partnership with U.S.VETS will allow for efficient and effective work to prevent veterans from falling into homelessness and in just a few weeks, mayors from across the country will go to our nation’s capital to advocate our shared priorities for those who served this country because it is time for our veterans to receive the housing support and services that they deserve.”
U.S.VETS offers many resources to ensure veterans never find themselves without shelter, including emergency, transitional, and permanent housing. When they learn that a veteran is either homeless or in danger of becoming homeless, such as facing eviction, they connect that veteran and their family to a safe place to live. They provide direct rent assistance, and a support system to address issues like substance abuse and unemployment. When permanent housing isn’t immediately available, they provide either emergency housing or transitional housing with wraparound services, as appropriate. Their goal is always to help get the veteran and their family into permanent, stable housing.
“We Are LA is helping us reach even more veterans in danger of becoming homeless,” said Stephen Peck, President and CEO of U.S.VETS. “Many veterans who face homelessness are struggling with physical or mental health issues that can be traced directly back to their service to our country. Others are aging. No matter the reason they’re struggling, we owe a safe, clean place to live to every single person who risked their lives for this country.”
“More than 6,000 eviction notices were filed in February alone,” said Conway Collis, President and CEO of the Mayor’s Fund. “We owe a special debt to veterans. U.S.VETS does crucial work, and more veterans in LA will avoid homelessness through this partnership. The fact is, the only way we are ever going to reduce and end homelessness is by preventing people from becoming homeless in the first place. No veteran should end up homeless in LA, and this partnership helps us meet that goal.”
The Mayor’s Fund created We Are LA to help connect Angelenos in danger of becoming homeless to every resource available to them – public and private. They send outreach workers to knock on the doors of people who have been served eviction notices, provide casework to connect at-risk Angelenos to resources, host tenant resource clinics and operate a hotline for anyone struggling to pay rent.
More information about We Are LA is available at www.mayorsfundla.org. Anyone who fears they may risk eviction can also call the We Are LA hotline at 213-584-1808.