Members of the Legion Family tour three D.C.-area veterans housing programs during Washington Conference.
For years at its national convention, staff from The American Legion’s Veterans Employment & Education Division (VEED) have led site visits to local homeless veterans’ facilities that provide support and housing. The visits include Legion Family members and other veteran service organizations and have typically involved bringing with them some sort of donation.
The tradition expanded this year to the Legion’s annual Washington Conference in the nation’s capital. A group that also included representatives from Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office spent most of Feb. 25 visiting three area facilities that provide both housing options and support services to area veterans facing homelessness.
The visits were to Fendall House and Access Housing Inc. DC’s Southeast Veterans Service Center in D.C., as well as to Unity in the Community in Fort Washington, MD. The day was organized by VEED Policy Associate Tyra Nelson.
“The goal of doing these, from the very beginning, was to not just participate in the events that we have, but to give back to the community we’re in,” Nelson said. “We’re here every year for our Washington Conference. I know we’re going to (Capitol Hill), we’re fighting for a good cause, but are we giving back to the community? The goal was to give back to the community and give (Legion Family members) an opportunity to actually see what we’re doing … and inviting them to be a part of it.”
Devell “Bo” Durham Jr., a member of American Legion Post 71 in Clayton, N.C., and the department’s Americanism chairman, learned about the offsite trip from fellow North Carolina Legionnaire and Past National Vice Commander Patricia Harris, who joined Durham and others on the visits.
“You’re at the ground level. You’re at the user level,” Durham said of the visits. “You’re actually seeing the results of your labor firsthand when you go down to individual that is homeless.”
Also accompanying the group were staff from the nonprofit Disabled Veterans National Foundation (DVNF), who handed out blankets and hundreds of comfort bags across the three stops. The bags contained socks and personal hygiene products; it was the second collaboration between the Legion and DVNF, with a similar effort taking place during last year’s American Legion National Convention in New Orleans.
At each stop, the Legion contingent learned about the services provided at each facility and were able to tour those facilities. Nelson also brought with her financial assistance in the form of a $1,000 gift card for Fendall Heights, and $500 gift cards for both Access Housing Inc. and Unity in the Community.
Fendall Heights. Managed by local nonprofit So Others Might Eat (SOME), the facility provides transitional, affordable and permanent supportive housing programs for veterans and their families. There is a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) liaison that works directly with Fendall Heights.
“The partnership we have with the VA for our families to be able to get subsidized housing through the VASH (HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) program,” said Phillip Leverette, SOME’s vice president of Family Services. “There are also case management services so that individuals can figure out what their goals are and develop a plan to help with their goals. We partner with them to make sure they’re able to build that level of self-efficacy and self-determination necessary to move onto bigger and better.”
There are 33 families currently at the facility, 21 of which who have children. The facility has primarily two-bedroom apartments but does offer some single-occupancy apartments as well. There also is a community living area, a room for children to paint, color, read and play games, and a computer lab.
The average stay for a family is five to seven years, and recidivism within the program is less than 3 percent.
“When we first opened up Fendall, it was supposed to be for women veterans and their kids,” said Rachel Nicholas, SOME’s executive vice president. “But then … we got a whole lot of single males raising their kids, so we had to go back to, ‘Maybe we need to accommodate them also because there’s a need.”
Access Housing Inc., DC. Founded in 1985 by Air Force veteran and then-D.C. City Councilman and future U.S. Housing and Urban Development Deputy Director H.R. Crawford – and now run by his son, Executive Director George Crawford – Access Housing Inc., DC focuses on building independence and self-sufficiency. Its Southeast Veterans Service Center consists of two buildings – one of which houses VA’s only Community-based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) that is used both by residents and veterans in the community. Last fall, The American Legion – through its Operation Comfort Warriors program – donated $11,500 that provided 361 new pairs of shoes and boots for the residents there.
The 94-unit program includes a computer lab, a cafeteria that serves three catered meals a day, financial and computer literacy classes, and case management. There currently are 60 veterans housed there. Crawford said some residents can stay as long as they want, while others stay for 90 days.
“We have all types of housing options: transitional, permanent, month to month,” said Clifton Lewis, Access Housing’s chief operating officer. “The veteran can stay here and get wraparound services and get all the help they need here in this facility.”
Crawford said that when his father founded Access Housing, “He wanted to do something where if he found himself homeless, he could come here and get a reset. Everyone needs a reset, and those men and women who’ve (served in the military) deserve a place like this, just to get a reset, get a hand up. Get help. They deserve it. If you’ve worn the uniform, you should never be homeless in the nation’s capital.”
Unity in the Community. Relatively new, Unity in the Community started its transition housing program in 2023 and has housed 47 veterans since then. Its program provides affordable housing options to veterans, the military and the community, while also providing an array of mental health and substance abuse therapy services.
Users of the program receive free resources for credit restoration, financial literacy, and home loan support. The nonprofit’s main facility provides temporary housing, provides mental health services and has hosted employment fairs.
“We wanted to create that community here for military members that were about to transition and for those who have already transitioned, regardless of the amount of time they’ve been out,” said Dr. Arthur Darby III, a former Air Force chaplain and the founder and CEO of Unity in the Community. “We’ll have veterans that are transitioning from another state. We’re able to house veterans and their families here during that transition time. It has been a joy and definitely has been a blessing to be able to do what we do.”
An “Opportunity to Continue to Give.” Nelson said visits such as this week’s give the Legion a chance to go “out into the community to show what we’re doing. The goal is to end homelessness. We’re going to the communities where they’re housing our veterans and we’re asking them, ‘What can we do as an organization to help you to do your job?’”
Durham took away a lot from the day. “What I actually gleaned from this opportunity is that there are individuals out there, veterans organizations, that really have a heart for the poor and for the veteran and for the homeless,” he said. “And they’re actually doing the work … providing resources, providing shelter and providing those lanes in which veterans can receive those benefits in which they’ve earned.”
Taking part in such efforts now is a calling for Durham. “For me, it is my mission for the years that I have left on earth to give as much as I can every day,” he said. “Currently, I have a son that’s on active duty in Minot, N.D., so it’s important for me to show my children that they have an opportunity to continue to give to veterans even when I’m long gone.”
- Homeless Veterans