Homeless veterans in southwest Illinois regain self-sufficiency at The Joseph Center

Paul Naylor 33, an Airborne Army veteran who was a military police officer during his time in service, regained his footing in life through The Joseph Center program.

A year and a half in the program has helped him land a job with the city of Collinsville, provided him a safe haven to lay his head, and equipped him with self-confidence to rejoin his community as a productive participant.

Naylor credits The Joseph Center in East St. Louis for a fresh start.

“When I got here I had nothing but a shirt on my back and bag full of clothes, now I have a room full of stuff,” said Naylor. “This program has probably saved me from spiraling into a huge addiction problem.”

The transition from soldier to civilian can come with a lot of difficulty for some vets like Naylor. Homelessness, mental illness, PTSD, substance and alcohol abuse, and unemployment, mixed with a lack of family or social support can overwhelm even the toughest of soldiers.

As of Jan. 2020, veterans make up 6% of the population in the United States but 8% of the country’s homeless population, according to the Military Times.

The Joseph Center, which is located at 5020 State St. in East St. Louis, is a 26-bed transitional living facility that provides housing, meals, case management services, transportation, substance use, and abuse training, life skills training, career exploration options, and other supportive services to its residents. It is operated by Eagle’s Nest of St. Clair County, a nonprofit corporation that works to help veterans earn self-sufficiency and economic independence.

It is the only organization of its kind in Illinois south of Chicago that provides trauma-informed services for homeless male veterans.

“We offer an environment that humanizes those individuals who feel that they have been rejected from society,” said Eric Hornsby, Lead Case Manager for The Joseph Center, Eagle’s Nest of St. Clair County. “A lot of times veterans will come here to the facility and they are broken ... and the staff here is excellent in uplifting them. I think that one of our primary things here is to put a smile on their face and give them hope.”

The Joseph Center offers two transitional housing programs which allow stays from two weeks to two years, depending on needs of the individual veteran.

The residents must adhere to set of rules and guidelines — including a daily curfew — or risk dismissal.

Most offenses warrant some grace, but violence and drugs brings immediate dismissal from the program.

“We want to provide a safe and drug free environment for the participants of the program,” said Hornsby.

But there is more to it than filling basic needs and demanding structure, Naylor said. To get the most out of the program, veterans have to give back with their effort to succeed.

“The thing about a lot of vets here, they have the misconception that if they just sit around and do nothing, something will happen for them,” Naylor said. “That’s not how it works. You gotta want that help,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of vets come in here and leave because they don’t want to put in the work.”

Veterans and homelessness

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were 736 homeless or at-risk veterans in Illinois with 236 of them unsheltered in 2020.

A joint study between Yale University and the VA Connecticut Healthcare System in 2015 found that veterans have a higher risk of going homeless than non-veterans. The disparity is most prominent among veterans of the all-volunteer force — those who signed up after July 1, 1973, when the draft was eliminated.

In its 2017 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, the U.S. Department for Housing and Urban Development reported that just over 40,000 veterans were experiencing homelessness on a given night in January of that year. Of those veterans, 91% were men. That number stands in comparison to the total population of more than 18.5 million living veterans.

“This is my second tour (at The Joseph Center),” said Jesse Davis Sr., who served three years in the Army as an infantryman. “... I was only here a couple of months the first time because I thought that I was ready to go, but I wasn’t patient and so I’m back again to give my all and do what I need to do to get myself in a better position.”

Davis says he was one of the first African Americans to train with the TOW, a hand-guided missile. He currently working at Golden Corral in Collinsville, thanks to assistance from the Supportive Services for Veteran Families, a program operated through the VA.

Requirements for The Joseph Center

Homelessness or being at-risk of becoming homeless is a prerequisite for veterans to be considered eligible for The Joseph Center. Referrals for the Center come from the Hope Recovery Center, which is part of the intake process along with a phone screening where the veterans are asked several background questions.

The Hope Recovery Center is part of the VA St. Louis Health Care System located in downtown St. Louis at 515 North Jefferson Ave. Services they provide for veterans include housing programs, job programs, and mental health programs.

There are a couple of exceptions.

The Joseph Center does not accept veterans who are sex offenders because of the close proximity to East St. Louis Senior High School. Veterans who are on parole or probation must be cleared by their attorney or representative if their probation or parole is in another state.

Once the veterans enter The Joseph Center they are assigned a case manager, who works with them to develop an Individual Treatment Plan. Success in the program depends on three basic areas of focus — housing, income, and sobriety. The center focuses on providing the veterans healthy and nutritious meals.

“The Joseph Center has been called the best-kept secret, however, due to the impact of the homeless, in general, I think that it would benefit the community to know that we are here to serve the veterans in the capacity of providing services to them in the way of shelter and meals, as well as clothing and transportation assistance if needed,” said Hornsby.

Other VA Programs

These are VA programs for at-risk and homeless veterans and their families:

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing
• Supportive Services for Veteran Families
• Homeless Providers Grant and Per Diem Program
• Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans Program
• Homeless Veteran Community Employment Services
• Compensated Work Therapy
• Health Care for Homeless Veterans
• Homeless Patient Aligned Care Teams Program
• Veterans Justice Outreach and Healthcare for Reentry Veterans Program
• Community resource and Referral Centers to access VA’s services

At risk and homeless veterans can access these services 24/7 by calling 1-877-4AID-Vet (1-877-424-3838) or by visiting the VA-St. Louis Medical center.

If you are a veteran or know veterans that are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, call the Hope Recovery Center at (314) 652-4100, ext. 55500.

This story was originally published November 12, 2021 at 9:00 AM.