Central Oregon Veterans Village

The March/April “Veteran” magazine includes an excellent article on homeless veterans by Sandy Miller, Chair, VVA Homeless Veterans Committee. Chair Miller is collecting data on the tiny homes movement and to be made available to Chapters and Councils. I am a 2 tour Vietnam combat wounded vet and Chair the nonprofit Bend Heroes Foundation honoring veterans and first responders with over 35 projects completed over the last 16 years and valued at about $2.5 million.

We are completing construction of the $1.2 million Central Oregon Veterans Village in Bend, OR providing transitional housing for 15 formerly homeless veterans. Each of the 15 12 ft  x 12 ft single occupant and heated tiny homes includes a basic bathroom, bed, closet, and table/chairs. The adjacent 2,400 square foot community building provides meals, laundry, showers, and case management offices. The Veterans Village is managed by the nonprofit Central Oregon Veterans Outreach. COVO and the residents jointly develop plans for each vet leading to jobs and affordable housing. All buildings meet building code requirements.

Local government agencies donated 1.5 acres of land and $450,000 in cash donations. Local builders, engineers, contractors and civic groups donated services, materials and labor.  Private donations ranged from $100 to $100,000. All 15 tiny homes were sponsored by individuals at $10,000 each within 1 month. We requested 28 local veterans’ groups to donate but only 3 groups donated totaling about 1.6% of the project cost. While the Oregon Veterans Motorcycle Association and its High Desert Eagles Chapter sponsored a $10,000 tiny house, VVA Chapters and State Council did not donate or show any interest.

VVA should encourage Chapters and State Councils to get involved by determining if there are homeless veterans in their area – check the HUD homeless point in time counts and donate labor, in kind services and cash to help uplift our homeless brothers and sisters. VVA members can find veterans housing projects by contacting local media.

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