Actor and former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has donated $250,000 to house 25 homeless veterans in Los Angeles. (Photo: Thomas Hawk)
Last Thursday, actor and former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that he had donated $250,000 to Village for Vets to build homes for 25 Los Angeles-area veterans.
The “tiny shelters” have already been purchased and built, and are currently housing 25 veterans on the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center campus.
Since Nov. 1, the campus has been home to around 40 veterans who previously lived outside the VA Medical Center in a now-defunct encampment popularly known as “Veterans’ Row.” The encampment was cleared as part of a Department of Veterans Affairs initiative to house roughly 550 Los Angeles-area veterans before Dec. 31 this year.
It is unclear how many, if any, veterans are currently living in temporary tents versus the Village for Vets shelters on the medical center’s grounds.
After Schwarzenegger announced the donation, Fox 11 Los Angeles reporter Elex Michaelson tweeted that Village for Vets had received “dozens” more donations and that “more vets will soon be getting homes.” Readers can visit Village for Vets’ website to donate as well. According to the veterans organization, every $10,000 buys one “tiny shelter for a homeless veteran.”
Los Angeles Is Ground Zero for Veterans Homelessness
In October, the VA announced that it would be focusing on Los Angeles as part of its overall strategy to combat veterans homlessness in the United States. California is home to the largest population of homeless veterans, with Los Angeles alone accounting for approximately 4,000 of the total number.
The VA has yet to announce the status of its end-of-year goal to house 550 Los Angeles veterans.
Author: Christian Southards
Coming from a family with a proud military background and wanting to contribute his writing skills to a worthy cause, Christian began writing for the California American Legion in August of 2020. His father is a 25-year Army Veteran and his grandfather served in the Navy during Vietnam.
I am a board member of Veterans for Life, Inc. and we would like to find at least 5 acres in the Sacramento area to provide housing and jobs for homeless veterans. The jobs will be in a farming environment where the vet will be able to earn money and be able to get their own housing on their own. The program we have outlined is totally for our veterans and can work with other services like the treatment of PTSD. Our initial objective is to house and provide jobs for six homeless veterans. We believe this can be duplicated in several parts of Sacramento and other cities.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Harry G Williams
US Army
California Army National Guard