Veteran Homeless Help

There are approximately 9000 ex-military vets that are homeless in the UK. These men and women have volunteered to keep the population of the UK safe while they sleep and deserve hope and not left out in the cold. I am ex-army myself and was homeless up until three years ago. I was helped to get myself back on my feet with help from various people and it is time to help those that are in the same position I was in. I was sleeping in a dark, cold, damp garage on a concrete floor before I got help – so I would like to think I know a thing or two about being homeless. I couldn’t claim benefits as I had no address and nowhere to go…I was force to beg and that was when I realised I had truly hit rock bottom. Both my parents died some years ago and so I didn’t have family to help me. I am now standing on my own two feet. It has been a long hard journey – both mentally and physically - for me and at times I was ready to end it all and take my own life. But, in the back of my mind I knew there had to be another path…all I needed was a little help to get myself back on track. I have spent time with other homeless vets in my time and know what kind of problems they face and would like to pass on to them same chances I had to start again. The MoD has not helped the servicemen and women as they should under the covenant which I believe is immoral and just plain wrong in my personal opinion. I aim to help homeless vets by securing some type of accommodation, food, warmth and other types of support they do need such as work and a direction. Mental and physical issues are a huge barrier for many vets that leave the forces, but with the right help these barriers can be overcome. Being in the army has taught me many things – mainly which having structure one day and none the next can have detrimental effects on that individual. Being institutionalised can have severe mental issues on a person when faced with a path with nothing in front of them. If I am honest it still makes me sad to think that our government does not do enough to help those that have been so kind to give their life to protect and serve. I urge all of you to give as much as you can so I can get this project off the ground so I can start helping those that really do need it. Even if it’s only a pound it will be going toward a cause you know will help those truly in need and on the edge. Thank you.